Rajkot: A 1.5-cm hard ayurvedic tablet lodged in the food pipe of a 70-year-old woman was removed intact through an emergency endoscopic procedure by ENT surgeon Dr Himanshu Thakkar in Rajkot during the Janmashtami holidays.The woman, Devika Vyas, was taking the tablet for knee and joint pain when it got stuck in the upper portion of her oesophagus. The tablet was extremely hard and could not be broken.Vyas was unable to swallow even water for several hours and developed severe throat pain.We suspected an obstruction in the upper oesophagus near the cricopharynx and performed an emergency endoscopic procedure under general anesthesia. Using an esophagoscope and specialized forceps, we carefully grasped the tablet and removed it in a single piece,“ said Dr Thakkar.The woman experienced immediate relief and was able to swallow water and food normally. She was kept under observation for around two hours before being discharged.The examination also revealed narrowing, or stricture, in the upper part of her oesophagus. according to the doctor such narrowing can cause tablets or pieces of food to get lodged in the food pipe.“Elderly people, particularly those with missing teeth, few teeth or difficulty chewing, can be vulnerable to such incidents,“ Dr Thakkar added.According to him a swallowed object can sometimes enter the airway instead of the food pipe and cause serious breathing obstruction.“Recurrent difficulty in swallowing tablets or food should not be ignored. If a person feels food is repeatedly getting stuck or is unable to swallow even water, timely medical evaluation is essential,” he said.
