Doctors found 28 of these in a woman’s oesophagus
The foreign bodies were missed on first presentation and led to fatal aspiration pneumonia
When a woman returned to ED with a worsening cough, her chest CT wasn’t exactly a picture of health, revealing 28 crayons lodged in her oesophagus.
The non-verbal patient had initially presented to hospital after a choking episode with persistent cough. Her medical history was significant for mental retardation and dysphagia.
Doctors had originally missed the foreign bodies, noting only a mild pulmonary opacity on X-ray and discharging her with antibiotics.
However, she re-presented with symptoms suggestive of aspiration pneumonia, with a CT showing numerous cylindrical objects in her oesophagus.
