Mumbai : In a bizarre development, a small boy from Kolhapur swallowed a tiny LED light bulb a few months ago that got stuck deep in his lung causing huge trauma and emotional stress for his family, officials said. When the unusual case was referred to the Jaslok Hospital & Research Centre (JHRC), a team of medicos successfully extricated the foreign object lodged in the three-and-half-year-old boy’s chest. Recounting the remarkable feat, a JHRC official said the child, Aarav Patil was reported to be suffering from severe breathing difficulties and incessant coughing for almost three months. Doctors treating him at his home town initially mistook it for pneumonia and subjected him to multiple courses of antibiotics and other medicines, but there was improvement in the boy’s condition. Subsequently, he was taken for advanced tests, examinations and a CT Scan which revealed the shocker – a metallic object was sitting inside the boy’s left bronchus, partially blocking the airway. More tests identified the offending object – it was a LED bulb from a toy car – a development so rare that even seasoned doctors described it as a ‘one in a million case’. Though doctors in Kolhapur attempted to retrieve the foreign body through flexible bronchoscopy - a minimally invasive procedure - the attempts proved to be unsuccessful. As Aarav’s condition appeared to deteriorate, his desperate family rushed him to JHRC and he was referred to a team of specialist doctors. After studying his case and examining Aarav, the medical team comprising thoracic surgeon Dr. Vimesh Rajput, ENT surgeon Dr. Divya Prabhat and Dr. Anurag Jain discovered that the bulb had not only blocked the bronchus but had also embedded itself in the surrounding tissues of the lung tissue, making its removal extremely challenging. A rigid bronchoscopy conducted further confirmed the severity of the obstruction. Left with no other option, the doctors decided to opt for a mini thoracotomy — a delicate surgery involving a 4-centimeter incision in the chest. “This was one of the rarest cases we’ve encountered. The bulb was lodged in such a way that conventional methods could not retrieve it. Through careful planning and teamwork, we managed to safely remove the object by a mini thoracotomy and restored Aarav’s lung function,” explained Dr. Rajput. Emphasising how such cases are ignored, Dr. Prabhat pointed out that chronic cough or breathing issues are often dismissed as common pneumonia or even asthma. “However, such persistent symptoms must always be investigated thoroughly, especially through early detection and imaging which can make all the difference to the patient,” she averred. JHRC CMO Dr. Milind Khadke said, “The foreign body aspiration in kids is far more common that parents may realise but quick intervention is critical to prevent long-term medical complications.”
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