Coin Ingestion
What’s the most common foreign body ingestion in kids? Coins!! And yep you guessed it: my little 16 month old swallowed a penny a couple of weeks ago. As a pediatrician I’ve seen this plenty of times but of course when it’s your own child it’s different!! I watched it go into his mouth and instead of politely asking if I could have it -like I have always done - I said NO! And I then tried to go after it. After much screaming and then choking and then coughing he gulped it down! I just froze. I thought now what do I do?
You go to the ER. Regardless whether a child has symptoms or not an x-ray needs to be obtained. The x-ray will show whether it passed into the stomach or got hung up somewhere! Occasionally the coin can hang out in the esophagus and cause problems such as esophageal erosions if they are not removed. If the coin is in the stomach then it will likely pass without incident. Most children will pass the coin in a few days. Examine the stool to make sure it has passed! If it hasn’t passed you’ll need to get follow up x-rays.
What about inducing vomiting? Good question. I wouldn’t recommend it. The baby could then choke on it again and this time he can get it into his lungs!! Just get the x-ray. My child happened to keep that coin in his stomach for a good two weeks and then got a hold of some Chamorro hot sauce. – I swear we really do watch our child! We happened to have an ER doctor friend with us. Who, after our baby was frothing and vomiting from the hot sauce, peered into the mess on the ground. He softly inquired, “Do you see a penny in there?” It wasn’t there but it did successfully move it from the stomach down to the intestines!! It passed two days later!
This was a trying incident to be sure, but one that reminded me to keep all small things away from young children. If it can fit inside an empty toilet paper roll then it’s too small. Ironically I was ridding the house of all teeny weeny things when the coin incident occurred! When something does happen make sure you’re ready. Get CPR certified. And if something does happen and if your child is having difficulty breathing or looks likes he’s in distress, call 911!
p.s. Check out the coin in the photostream. I cleaned it all up and saved it! What can I say…I’m a packrat at heart!!
Sheila Cason MD
You go to the ER. Regardless whether a child has symptoms or not an x-ray needs to be obtained. The x-ray will show whether it passed into the stomach or got hung up somewhere! Occasionally the coin can hang out in the esophagus and cause problems such as esophageal erosions if they are not removed. If the coin is in the stomach then it will likely pass without incident. Most children will pass the coin in a few days. Examine the stool to make sure it has passed! If it hasn’t passed you’ll need to get follow up x-rays.
What about inducing vomiting? Good question. I wouldn’t recommend it. The baby could then choke on it again and this time he can get it into his lungs!! Just get the x-ray. My child happened to keep that coin in his stomach for a good two weeks and then got a hold of some Chamorro hot sauce. – I swear we really do watch our child! We happened to have an ER doctor friend with us. Who, after our baby was frothing and vomiting from the hot sauce, peered into the mess on the ground. He softly inquired, “Do you see a penny in there?” It wasn’t there but it did successfully move it from the stomach down to the intestines!! It passed two days later!
This was a trying incident to be sure, but one that reminded me to keep all small things away from young children. If it can fit inside an empty toilet paper roll then it’s too small. Ironically I was ridding the house of all teeny weeny things when the coin incident occurred! When something does happen make sure you’re ready. Get CPR certified. And if something does happen and if your child is having difficulty breathing or looks likes he’s in distress, call 911!
p.s. Check out the coin in the photostream. I cleaned it all up and saved it! What can I say…I’m a packrat at heart!!
Sheila Cason MD
Labels: medical issues
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