Swallowed Objects and How to Prevent It

Children are naturally curious and love to put things in their mouth, nose and ears. As a parent it's tough to keep your eyes on your baby at all times. And accidents are sure to happen. Here is a list of common items, children have been known to swallow, inhale and insert :

Foods

Peanuts
Popcorn
Seeds
Hot dogs
Bones

Toys and Small Objects

Toy parts
Crayons and pen parts
Stickers
buttons
Pins
nails
beads and screws
Coins

The commonest food item being swallowed is the peanut. Never allow your child to eat or play with peanuts. Most aspirations and ingestions occur in children under the age of 4. Avoid sliced foods, which are easier to lodge in the airway. Most choking episodes occur when children are playing or running around while eating, so try to keep children at the table until they finish their meals.

No matter what the symptoms, if you suspect your child has ingested something talk to your pediatrician right away. Kids will also put stuff in their ears and nose . The ear is fairly straightforward, but your doctor will want to check and make sure the ear canal and drum haven't been damaged.

How to prevent it:

Keep an eye on what your child is getting into and avoid having high-risk objects around the house.
Remember that a crawling baby can get to your purse, a wastebasket and whatever else is on the floor. So keep your handbag up high, and don't leave anything around that's small enough to choke on like coins, safety pins, pen caps, balloons (inflated or not), paper clips, buttons and toys.
Make sure all foods are cooked until they're soft, then mashed or cut into bits.
Make sure all medicines in your home have childproof caps and store the drugs well out of reach.
Store dangerous liquids out of your child's reach.
Don't lay medicine on the counter or table, to take later and remind grandparents to store their pill bottles out of reach.

Treatment

80 - 90% of swallowed objects may be passed out without any complications. However, sharp objects like an open safety-pin, or a hair clip can be life-threatening.

If your child is choking but can talk, cry or breathe, his airway is only partially blocked. Don't try to unblock it, which might make the problem worse. He'll probably cough up whatever's choking him.
If the object needs to be removed, it should be done so within 24 hours of ingestion to prevent serious injury.
As long as your child can cough, cry or speak, there is no immediate danger. Watch for these signs: Pain when swallowing, Drooling, Vomiting, Refusal to eat, Coughing and Wheezing
If your child is choking and can't breathe, it's usually obvious that something is very wrong and a call to the doctor should be made immediately.
Its always advisable to see the doctor in case your child has swallowed something. If the item is in the trachea (windpipe) or lungs, it will most likely need to be removed using a special camera designed to examine the lungs.
If the item is in the esophagus, depending on what the object is and its position, it may need to be removed with a similar camera device or the doctor may want to watch and wait to see if it will pass on its own.
Attempts to remove objects in the ear or nose will most likely result in their being pushed further in. Seek medical attention immediately.
If your child becomes unconscious, call for the ambulance.
Even if your child appears well initially, do not waste time in attempting to observe your child at home. This is because some medicines or poisons do not manifest the effects until several hours after they have been ingested. One common example is paracetamol poisoning. If your child swallows an excessive amount of paracetamol, he may appear well in the first few hours, but may suffer from severe liver and kidney complications if left untreated.

Case of poisoning :

If you suspect your child has swallowed or inhaled a household chemical or medicine, call Poison Control or doctor immediately.

Call the doctor if you see any of these :

blue lips or skin; inability to swallow, talk, cry, make noise or breathe; or loss of consciousness.

While waiting for emergency help, do the following

Step 1: If he doesn't cough up the object, lie him face down and firmly apply 4 backblows on the back in the area between the shoulder blades to attempt to dislodge the inhaled object.

Step 2: If he doesn't cough up the object, turn him on his back. Now, with two fingers, deliver five quick thrusts to the center of his chest, right on the breastbone, a fingerbreadth below the nipples.

Step 3: If he still can't breathe, alternate between back blows and chest thrusts until the airway is clear or help arrives.

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