Madhukar Rainbow children’s hospital Pediatric surgery team miraculously saves toddler who aspirated a LED bulb

In an exceptional medical journey, a 3-year-old boy found himself facing a challenge after aspirating an LED bulb from a toy pen. The bulb lodged itself deep within the segmental bronchus of the posterior medial segment of the lower lobe of his left lung, triggering a series of intricate medical interventions.

Responding to the urgent situation, the Pediatric Surgery team under Prof. Dr. Minu Bajpai, Director Emeritus, MadhukarRainbow Children Hospital, converged to attempt the removal of foreign body from air way using both flexible and rigid Bronchoscopies. Despite their concerted efforts and the utilization of specialized equipment, the bulb stubbornly resisted extraction. After valiant attempts, it became evident that a more invasive approach was necessary.

The Surgical team, led by the esteemed Prof. Dr. Minu Bajpai, who undertook a thoracotomy with precision and skill. Miraculously, they retrieved the bulb without the need for a lobectomy, evidenceof their expertise and collaborative efforts. Dr. Chandrasekhar Singha HOD PICU, and Dr.(Col.) Rakhee Goyal HOD Anesthesia, gave significant contributions for intra operative care and post-operative recovery of the patient.

The journey began with the boy presenting symptoms of recurrent coughing over a 15-day period, stemming from his accidental aspiration of the toy pen tip while at play. An X-ray revealed the presence of a wire with a U-bend in the left middle zone of his chest, leading to a crucial revelation upon further investigation—a toy pen with an LED bulb, which the boy had swallowed.

Upon admission, the interdisciplinary medical team swiftly mobilized, recognizing the urgency of the situation. Plans were laid for bronchoscopy and the procedure revealed extensive infection and secretions within the bronchi, complicating the retrieval process. Despite employing both rigid and flexible bronchoscopes and an array of instruments, the bulb remained firmly entrenched in reactive tissue, necessitating a strategic delay to administer antibiotics and mitigate infection.

Following further assessments, including CT scans and additional bronchoscopies, it became evident that surgical intervention was imperative. Despite encountering challenges during surgery, including the bulb's entanglement within lung tissue and bronchial walls, the team persevered. With meticulous precision, a bronchotomy was performed, disengaging and removing the foreign body before closing the bronchial opening and chest layers.

This complex case highlights the gravity of such conditions and the importance of a coordinated, multi-disciplinary approach. Prof. Bajpai and the dedicated medical team at Madhukar Rainbow Children's Hospital depicted excellence in pediatric care.

As a message to the public, this story serves as a reminder of the inquisitive nature of young children and the potential risks associated with unsupervised play. Parents are urged to remain vigilant, keeping small objects out of reach to prevent accidental aspiration and safeguard their children's well-being. Children should be kept away from such objects like Peanuts, Gram-dal, Cashew-supari pieces, dry fruits & any such small objects.Moreover, with the peanut season approaching, heightened awareness is important to ensuring the safety of our little ones.

About Rainbow Children’s Hospital

About Rainbow Children’s Hospital Rainbow network comprises of 19 hospitals and 4 clinics in 6 cities, with a total bed capacity of 1,935 beds. Our Pediatric services operating under the brand “Rainbow Children’s Hospital” includes newborn and pediatric intensive care, pediatric multi-specialty services, pediatric quaternary care (including organ transplantation); whereas our women care services under “Birthright by Rainbow” offers perinatal care services which includes normal and complex obstetric care, multidisciplinary fetal care, perinatal genetic and fertility care along with gynecology services.

Rainbow Children’s Hospital built on strong fundamentals of a multidisciplinary approach with a full-time consultant led clinical service along with 24/7 commitment in a child centric environment. The company follows a hub-and-spoke operating model where the hub hospital provides comprehensive outpatient, inpatient care, with a focus on tertiary and quaternary services, while the spokes provide 24/7 emergency care, large outpatient services and comprehensive obstetrics, pediatric inpatient and level 3 NICU services. This model is successfully operational at Hyderabad and is gaining traction in Bengaluru. The endeavoris to replicate this approach in Chennai and across the National Capital Region. Subsequently Rainbow intends to expand into tier-2 cities of Southern India.

Rainbow embraces a unique doctor engagement model, where doctors work exclusively on a full-time, retainer basis. The doctors work in teams and have 24/7 commitment, which is particularly important for children’s emergency, neonatal, pediatric intensive care services and to support pediatricretrieval services. The Company also operates the country’s largest pediatric DNB training programme in private healthcare, offering post graduate residential DNB and fellowship programme.