Why you should never hold pins in your mouth: Vadodara teen girl’s narrow escape serves a cautionary tale
A 15-year-old girl in Vadodara survived a life-threatening ordeal after accidentally swallowing a hijab pin that lodged in her trachea near her heart. Doctors at SSG Hospital used a complex rigid bronchoscopy to save her.
A 15-year-old girl from Panigate in Vadodara had a close shave Saturday after she accidentally swallowed a hijab pin, and it got stuck in the airway to the lungs close to the heart. Doctors of the ear-nose-throat (ENT) department and head-neck surgery at SSG Hospital removed the foreign body within four hours through a rigid bronchoscopy and discharged the girl Wednesday morning.
The girl, whose identity has been withheld, was brought to the emergency and casualty department of SSG Hospital on January 3, with a complaint of throat pain and difficulty in breathing after she had accidentally swallowed a hijab pin with a sharp end into the airway. The hospital immediately conducted an X-ray that showed the pin was lodged close to the heart, requiring immediate attention.
Speaking to The Indian Express, Dr Ranjan Aiyer, dean and medical superintendent, SSG hospital, said, “The girl was wearing a hijab over her head and had held the pleats of the cloth with one hand and placed the cloth pin in her mouth. In an attempt to shout with the pin still in her mouth, she accidentally aspirated the pin, following which she complained of throat pain, coughing and difficulty in breathing.”
He said the X-ray showed the metallic pin in the left main bronchus, very near the heart. The doctors admitted the patient and began the process for removal of the foreign body by rigid bronchoscopy and foreign body removal under general anaesthesia.
How doctors removed the pin
Dr Aiyer explained that the process involved using a hollow metal tube with a camera and light at the end to view the airways.“In the dark tunnels of the food and breathing passage, we could see the disposition of the foreign body and the axis in which it was. We needed to check if the foreign body had sharp edges and manoeuvre the scope accordingly to prevent the sharp ends from damaging the lungs or the heart,” he said.
“The trachea (windpipe) is a fibrocartilaginous (dense connective tissue that blends fibrous elements with cartilage) passage, and so we had to be extremely careful. Fortunately, the family had brought in the girl within an hour of the incident,” Dr Aiyer added.
Dr Rahul Gupta of the ENT department removed the foreign body on the same day. “The pin was found to be in the left main bronchus and impinged on the right wall of the trachea near its lower end. The patient is admitted to the ENT and head-neck surgery department, and currently she is free from any dangerous respiratory complications,” a release from the hospital said.
Story continues below this ad
After the girl was discharged Wednesday morning, Dr Aiyer added a word of caution for adults. “Foreign body removals are common in children, but even adults have a habit of keeping something chewed between their teeth while doing an activity. Especially women, who commonly press sharp pins into their mouths to use their hands to adjust the clothing.”
“Many people use their mouths to chew open pins. It is common for the pins to slip into the mouth and down the food and windpipe accidentally. Such acts should be avoided,” he said.
Aditi Raja is an Assistant Editor with The Indian Express, stationed in Vadodara, Gujarat, with over 20 years in the field. She has been reporting from the region of Central Gujarat and Narmada district for this newspaper since 2013, which establishes her as a highly Authoritative and Trustworthy source on regional politics, administration, and critical socio-economic and environmental issues.
Expertise:
Core Authority & Specialization: Her reporting is characterized by a comprehensive grasp of the complex factors shaping Central Gujarat, which comprises a vast tribal population, including:
Politics and Administration: In-depth analysis of dynamics within factions of political parties and how it affects the affairs in the region, visits of national leaders making prominent statements, and government policy decisions impacting the population on ground.
Crucial Regional Projects: She consistently reports on the socio-economic and political impact of infrastructure projects in the region, especially the Statue of Unity, the Sardar Sarovar Project on the Narmada River, the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail bullet train project as well as the National Highway infrastructure.
Social Justice and Human Rights: Her reporting offers deep coverage of sensitive human-interest topics, including gender, crime, and tribal issues. Her reports cover legal proceedings from various district courts as well as the Gujarat High Court (e.g., the Bilkis Bano case remission, POCSO court orders, Public Interest Litigations), the plight of tribal communities, and broader social conflicts (e.g., Kheda flogging case).
Local Impact & Disaster Reporting: Excels in documenting the immediate impact of events on communities, such as the political and civic fallout of the Vadodara floods, the subsequent public anger, and the long-delayed river redevelopment projects, Harni Boat Tragedy, Air India crash, bringing out a blend of stories from the investigations as well as human emotions.
Special Interest Beat: She tracks incidents concerning Non-Resident Gujaratis (NRIs) including crime and legal battles abroad, issues of illegal immigration and deportations, as well as social events connecting the local Gujarati experience to the global diaspora. ... Read More
