When a Tamarind Seed Took Root in a Child’s Windpipe: KEM Hospital Pune Doctors Perform Life-Saving Surgery
Pune : Doctors at KEM Hospital, Pune removed tamarind seed that had entered in the wind pipe of a 12-year-old from Ahilyanagar district. The foreign object was discovered after the boy was admitted and intubated in the ICU following neurological problems. The surgery was led by Dr. Abhijit Benare with .Dr. Khandu Padwal Anaesthetist, Dr. Yogesh Sovani, Urologist at KEM Hospital Pune.
Explaining the case Dr. Abhijit Benare, Consulting Paediatric Surgeon said that the 12-year-old was admitted to the ICU at KEM Hospital Pune last month following neurological problems. The patient was referred by a hospital in Ahilyanagar district. The neurological problems let to breathing difficulties after which he was intubated. After medical management , we decided to extubate, we experienced difficulties in removing the breathing tube.
Dr. Benare added that since it was difficult to remove the breathing tube, we conducted a CT Scan which showed a foreign mass inside the windpipe. We planned for a bronchoscopy, but the patient’s health had deteriorated and we had to do an emergency bronchoscopy. This procedure is a medical test used to see inside the airways and lungs using a thin, lighted tube. This showed a foreign object inside. *Once the foreign object and its position was diagnosed, we decided to do a tracheostomy, but before that while discussing with relatives , we got a crucial clue that the foreign object, they said a tamarind seed was stuck for almost three months .*
We went ahead with the procedure creating an opening in the front of the neck and into the windpipe (trachea). The procedure faced challenges as the tracheostomy tube could not get out the object properly, so we decided to use a nephroscope which is a thin, lighted tube with a camera and working channels used by doctors normally to look inside a kidney. But this worked, the object was successfully removed and the patient is stable and healthy.
Dr. Benare said that when we removed the tamarind seed, the most unusual thing we saw was that the seed was germinating. This might be because the tamarind seed was holed up inside for more than a couple of months. The windpipe has oxygen and water content which explains how the seed had started germinating.
Shirin Wadia, CEO, KEM Hospital Pune the success highlights the expertise of our doctors, supported by state-of-the-art equipment, multidisciplinary care, and extensive experience in managing complex cases on a daily basis.