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By:

Quaid Najmi

4 January 2025 at 3:26:24 pm

Surgery saves boy who gulped tiny LED bulb

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...

Surgery saves boy who gulped tiny LED bulb

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.”

The Sultans of Solapur

Updated: Oct 25, 2024

Sushilkumar Shinde

Sushilkumar Shinde’s recently released memoir reveals lesser-known and interesting facets of India’s political history and politicians as well as the social and political developments over the past five decades that Shinde has witnessed as a politician. Born to a cobbler in Solapur, Shinde rose to become India’s Home Minister, the chief minister of Maharashtra and the Governor of Andhra Pradesh during his 50 year-long political career.


 A law graduate from Kolhapur’s Shivaji University, Shinde began his professional life as a bailiff in a Solapur court and then joined the police force as a sub-inspector. But life had other plans. His senior by eight months, Sharad Pawar had urged Shinde to join politics. Which he did and later went on to occupy several high positions in the country.


 Shinde won elections to the legislative assembly from Solapur from 1974 and given his dedication to the party, was put in-charge of Sonia Gandhi’s election campaign in Amethi in 1999. Her thumping victory is said to have consolidated his close association with the Gandhi family and the Congress, a party he has stayed loyal to. On his party bosses’ insistence, Shinde had unsuccessfully contested the vice-presidential elections against the National Democratic Alliance’s candidate in 2002. In 2003, he became the first Dalit to occupy the post of the chief minister of Maharashtra after his predecessor Vilasrao Deshmukh resigned. Until then, political parties had stuck to members of the Maratha community as their chief ministerial picks given the caste structure in the state.


 After a stint as the Governor of Andhra Pradesh in 2004, Shinde moved to Delhi and became the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, was the Union Power Minister and even led the prestigious and sensitive Home ministry. His tenure as the country’s home minister saw two major decisions—the hanging of Afzal Guru and Ajmal Kasab.


 Affable and soft spoken, the light eyed politician from Solapur has friends across political parties and few foes. He shared a close rapport with Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray and continues to be friends with Pawar. His warm relationship with Vilasrao Deshmukh had apparently earned them the sobriquet of do hanson ka joda because each would recommend the other’s name for the state’s top job whenever the Congress was scouting for a change of guard in Maharashtra.


 While his two older daughters stayed away from public life, the former minister’s youngest daughter Praniti followed her father into politics, taking baby steps into public life with an NGO that worked with the women of Solapur. She won her first election in 2009 and has, since then, been a three-time legislator and first time MP from Solapur, a constituency nurtured by her father.

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