What to do if you are sure your baby has swallowed a foreign object

Babies are naughty but do not have the ability to speak, so they may easily swallow foreign objects while playing. If they swallow foreign objects, timely and effective treatment will pose a great threat to them. At this time, you should pay attention to whether the foreign object is stuck in the esophagus, and whether the baby has difficulty swallowing, breathing, coughing, or even suffocation.

1. Foreign bodies are stuck in the cervical esophagus, with symptoms such as crying and restlessness, increased salivation, difficulty in swallowing, choking, refusal to eat, or vomiting after eating. If a foreign object presses on the nearby throat or trachea, reflex laryngeal spasm, coughing, wheezing, difficulty breathing, and even suffocation may occur. Sometimes due to the pain, the child maintains a forward neck position and dares not move.

2. If the foreign body is stuck in the thoracic esophagus, the child will mainly experience pain behind the sternum, and the obstruction and respiratory symptoms will be relatively mild.

3. Foreign bodies stay in the esophagus for too long, or sharp foreign bodies cause direct damage, resulting in complications such as esophagitis, esophageal abscess, esophageal perforation, mediastinal infection, esophageal organ fistula, and purulent pleurisy. Fever, dehydration, difficulty breathing and symptoms of systemic poisoning may also occur.

4. Sometimes sharp foreign objects (small bone fragments or fish bones) can directly penetrate the esophageal wall, puncture the aorta or pericardium, causing massive gastrointestinal bleeding or pericardial suppuration, which is extremely dangerous.

5. Take good care of your baby and take precautions. Babies often put small objects or toys in their mouths, play with them while holding them, and sometimes jump around, which can easily cause foreign objects to enter their airways. In addition, parents or other elders may feed babies some inappropriate foods from time to time, such as melon seeds, peanuts, hard candies, etc. It is recommended that young babies try not to eat them. As for jelly, due to its soft texture, it is very easy to deform after entering the trachea and completely block the respiratory tract. Therefore, it is best not to let babies under 3 years old eat it without permission.