SURGEONS have saved the life of a nine-month-old baby struggling to breathe – a fortnight after she swallowed a Christmas confetti star.
Doctors had initially sent the tot home in Australia, despite her coughing up blood.
The near-tragedy has prompted experts to warn parents of the danger “for similar cases over these Christmas holidays”.
At first, doctors attributed the baby girl’s bloody spit to her choking on her own saliva.
But there were more serious symptoms two days later, including difficulty breathing, high temperatures, continued coughing as well as difficulties swallowing liquid and food.
So the baby was taken to hospital, where yet again the cause of her problems was missed.
Apart from wheezing, she had an abnormally high respiratory rate of 68 breaths per minute, and further examination found that her throat was red.
She was diagnosed with a viral upper respiratory tract infection, and sent home yet again.
But days later, her symptoms worsened to an extent where she struggled to breathe easily.
The baby was also lethargic, drooling, and had a reduced blood flow, reported radiologists Paul Heyworth, of Gold Coast University Hospital, and Dr Ryan Shulman, of Queensland X-Ray, in The Medical Journal of Australia.
A further investigation at hospital found a mass in the left side of her neck, containing pus.
During ultrasound and CT scans, the cause of her problem was finally discovered – a five-pointed Christmas confetti star.
The sharp object had become stuck in her windpipe.
So surgeons carried out an emergency incision, before draining the abscess and removing the lodged star.
The tot has since made a full recovery after receiving intravenous antibiotics to fight the infection.
The researchers warned people against leaving the Christmas stars near very young children.
They wrote: “Despite their flexible nature, the sharp points of confetti stars appear to increase the risk of lodgement in the upper aerodigestive tract [airways including the mouth and throat].
“And their reflective surfaces attract the interests of young children with a propensity to place things in their mouths.
“While uncommon, the potential for similar cases to present over these Christmas holidays exist.”
