A Happy Day

We just finished removing paper from the nose of a child, when a four year old boy came in vomiting and dyspneic (difficulty breathing). He was salivating profusely and vomiting every ten seconds. Perhaps he was poisoned. The brother said he saw a blue pen top in the child’s mouth before the vomiting began. When he was examined, I saw a large blue pen top in the back of his mouth. The child was turned upside down and as the pen top moved superiorly, his breathing improved and his clearing of his throat subsided. The child was taken to the operating room, sedated and the large pen top removed with difficulty. The child did well and was sent home at 4PM. One life saved, charges 19 GHc ($19).