A 22-year-old man had a fortunate escape after accidentally swallowing his dentures, narrowly avoiding a life-threatening situation.
The young man, who wore a set of silver false teeth, experienced an epileptic episode, leading to an unexpected turn of events. Following the incident, he began to cough and wheeze heavily, prompting him to seek medical assistance.
Upon conducting X-ray scans, healthcare professionals made a startling discovery – the dentures, measuring 4cm, had become lodged in the airway leading to his lung. Urgent action was required to remove the foreign object.
Doctors promptly performed a bronchoscopy, a procedure that involves inserting a flexible tube down the patient’s throat. Through careful maneuvering, the dental accessory was successfully dislodged from the lung airway.
During the operation, the patient, hailing from Wisconsin, United States, experienced bronchospasm, a tightening of the muscles in the lung airway. To alleviate this complication, the man received steroid treatment before eventually being discharged.
The details of this incident were documented in the Cureus medical journal.
