Almost lost his life because of a perch bone piercing his esophagus.

Ho Chi Minh City: A 34-year-old woman had a tilapia bone pierce her esophagus, close to her aorta, and is at risk of death if she does not receive timely emergency care.

On May 17, a representative of Binh Dan Hospital said the patient was admitted with a fever, chest pain and fatigue. Before that, the woman bought 1.3 kg of tilapia to fry and eat, then felt discomfort in her neck and chest. The pain progressed, the patient went to the doctor and was diagnosed with gastroesophageal reflux and prescribed medication.

Two days later, the pain did not subside, the patient had a CT scan, which revealed a foreign object resembling a fish bone penetrating the esophageal wall, moving closer to the thoracic aortic arch.

The patient was transferred to Binh Dan Hospital due to the dangerous location of the foreign object. The team from the Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Digestive Surgery, Digestive Endoscopy and Anesthesia and Resuscitation of Binh Dan Hospital coordinated with doctors from the Ho Chi Minh City Heart Institute to perform surgery to save the patient.

Dr. Ho Khanh Duc, Head of the Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, said the patient faced two major problems at the same time. First, the risk of a foreign object puncturing the thoracic aorta, causing massive blood loss, which could lead to death. Next, the perforated esophagus allowed bacteria to enter the mediastinum, causing mediastinal empyema, a very serious complication that was also life-threatening.

Therefore, doctors need to intervene quickly to perform three goals simultaneously in one surgery, including suturing the thoracic aortic perforation, esophageal perforation, and removing foreign objects from the patient's body.

Thanks to smooth coordination, the team achieved three goals, removing the foreign object, a piece of fish bone about 3 cm long, 0.6 cm wide, located high up near the superior aortic arch.

A piece of perch bone after being removed from the patient's body. Photo: Provided by the hospital — A piece of perch bone after being removed from the patient's body. Photo: *Provided by the hospital*

Doctor Nguyen Phu Huu, Deputy Head of the Department of Digestive Surgery, said that in emergency cases of swallowing foreign objects in the digestive tract, fish bones are the most common foreign objects.

"However, cases where a fish bone punctures the esophagus and then passes through the muscle tissue, tearing the thoracic aorta like this one are very rare and extremely dangerous," said Mr. Huu.

Doctors recommend that when preparing food, people should remove all hard and sharp bones to avoid the risk of swallowing foreign objects. During or after a meal, especially when consuming foods with hard and sharp bones, if you suddenly feel pain in the chest or abdomen, you should think about the possibility of swallowing bones. At that time, people need to go to a medical facility immediately for timely treatment.

"Do not try to swallow more food or drink water to 'go down' it because there is a risk of damaging the digestive tract leading to infection and dangerous complications," the doctor advised.

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