The Department of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy - Central Military Hospital 108 has received a rare case. The patient is a young man weighing nearly 100kg, with a habit of using his phone all the time, including when eating and drinking. While mixing weight loss powder, due to being engrossed in looking at the phone screen, this person accidentally drank a cylindrical moisture-proof box, nearly 2cm in diameter.
Immediately after that, the patient was taken to the hospital in a state of anxiety and discomfort in the esophageal area. Doctors quickly prescribed endoscopy to handle the removal of the foreign object.
Dr. Tran Van Luc - Department of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy, Central Military Hospital 108 said that the process of removing the foreign object encountered many difficulties due to the large, rigid cylindrical anti-humidity box. The treatment required close coordination and careful operation to rotate the foreign object vertically, avoiding tearing or puncturing the esophageal mucosa. After about 30 minutes, the foreign object was safely removed.
According to Dr. Luc, this is not a rare case. In fact, the hospital regularly receives cases of swallowing the wrong moisture protection pack, medicine cap, medicine blister... due to the habit of eating and drinking while using the phone or doing many things at the same time.
Common silica gel anti-humidity particles do not cause acute poisoning. However, swallowing them still poses many health risks such as foreign objects in the digestive tract that can cause scratches, ulcers, even perforation of the esophagus, stomach or intestinal obstruction if large or sharp edges. Risk of choking if foreign objects fall into the airway, which can cause acute obstruction, leading to respiratory failure.
