Fish bone fragment stuck in man’s tongue

Two weeks after the suspected bone stuck in his throat, Mr. Duc’s discomfort worsened, he had difficulty eating and drinking, and went to Tam Anh General Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City for examination. The results of a throat endoscopy showed that the foreign object was deeply embedded in the soft tissue at the tip of the tongue, and the surrounding mucosa was swollen. The doctor suspected that Mr. Duc had a piece of bone stuck deep under his tongue, and ordered an ultrasound of the tongue area to determine the location of the foreign object.

Ultrasound showed a long foreign object, creating a pus pocket in the tongue. The patient underwent minor surgery to remove a 2cm long fish bone with a sharp tip. On July 5, Master, Doctor CKI Nguyen Trung Nguyen, ENT Center, said that the fish bone had been stuck in the tongue for two weeks, and there had been no complications of abscess or widespread infection. If the fish bone had not been found and removed in time, Mr. Duc’s pus pocket would have spread. After the minor surgery, his health was stable.

A fish bone stuck in the tip of the tongue can be easily removed by a doctor. If the fish bone is stuck deep in the lower throat behind the tongue, moving to the larynx or esophagus, the doctor must perform surgery under anesthesia to remove the foreign object. In case the fish bone falls into the stomach, moves down to the intestine, punctures the intestine, causing inflammation, liver abscess, and abdominal peritoneum.

Doctor Nguyen said that folk methods such as swallowing rice, swallowing bananas, and using fingers to pick out bones are not effective and can accidentally push the bone deeper into the surrounding tissue, making it difficult to diagnose and treat later. Foreign bodies in the throat, especially fish bones, are common, not only in children but also in adults.

Doctors recommend not to joke around while eating, especially when eating rice with fish or fruits with seeds that are easy to choke on such as longan, mangosteen, rambutan… If you suspect you are choking on a foreign object with symptoms such as painful swallowing, difficulty swallowing, or difficulty swallowing, you should go to the hospital as soon as possible so that the doctor can handle it promptly.