Tooth lodged in lung due to seizure

When 6-year-old Pham Quoc Hien from Tan Phu, Ho Chi Minh City had a seizure, his parents placed a hard object in his mouth to prevent him from biting his tongue. As a result, one of his teeth went missing. This tooth ended up as a “guest” in his left lung for more than 10 days without anyone knowing.

Inpatient at the Ear, Nose, and Throat Department of Children’s Hospital No. 1 (Photo: VNE)

Afterward, Hien was taken to the neurology department of Children’s Hospital No. 1 for treatment. There, his father asked the doctor where the broken tooth could have fallen in the body since they couldn’t find it outside. The neurologist referred Hien to the Ear, Nose, and Throat Department to check for foreign objects in the airway.

Although the child showed no symptoms related to ear, nose, and throat issues, the doctors decided to perform an endoscopy to locate the tooth. They conducted X-rays and endoscopies three times before discovering it in the left lung. By this time, the broken tooth had caused the lung to swell and develop pus.

Fearing that delaying treatment could lead to lung abscesses, pus buildup, and even death, the doctors performed surgery to remove the tooth yesterday (March 29), ten days after the “tooth loss” incident. Due to the lengthy time, the tooth had adhered very tightly to the lung, making it difficult to extract. The doctors had to use a telescope connected to the endoscope to magnify the image in order to retrieve the foreign object. “Because the tooth was decayed, the X-ray images were not clear,” the surgeon explained.

According to Dr. Dang Hoang Son, head of the Ear, Nose, and Throat Department at Children’s Hospital No. 1, this is the first case of a patient with epilepsy having a broken tooth that ended up in the lung. The right lung is sloped, while the left lung is horizontal; normally, foreign objects fall into the right lung. However, in this case, the object fell into the left lung, which surprised the doctors.

The doctor advised that when a child has a seizure due to epilepsy, parents should loosen their clothing for comfort and place the child in the most comfortable position for breathing. If the child is breathing evenly, not bleeding, and the teeth are tightly clenched, there is no immediate danger. Just monitor the child’s condition; if the seizure lasts for a prolonged period, seek medical attention. Absolutely avoid prying open the child’s mouth with hard objects or squeezing lemon juice into their mouth to stop the seizure, as these traditional methods can lead to choking and cause lemon seeds or other foreign objects to enter the lungs, resulting in swelling, inflammation, or pus buildup. Such pneumonia cases are often difficult to diagnose.

Vo An