Toddler refused to eat; doctors discovered ring in his throat

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In an unusual procedure, doctors at Jerusalem’s Shaarei Zedek Medical Center removed a ring stuck in the throat of a two-year-old boy.

The boy complained of pain in his mouth and refused to eat, telling his parents he had swallowed a ring.

The parents, residents of the eastern Jerusalem neighbourhood of Shuafat, immediately took the boy to a local clinic, where an X-ray showed the ring was stuck in the boy’s throat. Clinic staff sent the family to Shaare Zedek to have the ring removed. Although the boy was not having difficulty breathing, the staff worried that the ring’s jagged edges might damage the esophagus.

An x-ray of a two-year-old boy with a ring stuck in his throat. Photo by Shaarei Zedek spokesperson

Specialists from the hospital’s otolaryngology department performed an urgent operation under general anesthesia, successfully removing the ring. The toddler was released to his home after a day of observation in good condition.

“Fortunately for Adam, the ring got stuck in the proximal esophagus, and there was no danger of suffocation,” explained Dr Anat Dinor, a head and neck surgeon and senior physician in the otolaryngology department who treated the toddler.

“However, the main concern in the case of swallowing a foreign body with jagged or sharp edges is that it may cause a perforation (hole) of the esophagus since it is stuck in the wall. In the operating room under general anesthesia, the foreign body was removed using a rigid endoscope,” Dr Dinor said.

After returning home, the boy’s father called the doctors to thank them and let them know that “Adam was back to smiling and eating.”

“This incident reminded us to be careful and take care of our little ones,” the father said.

Dr Dinor stressed that the incident highlights the dangers of children swallowing other small items — particularly button batteries, which are commonly found in children’s games.