Choking is a common accident in children, especially children aged 1 to 3 (According to statistics of Children’s Hospital 2). At this age, the reflexes to open and close the larynx to protect the child’s airway when eating are not yet proficient, the baby is learning to eat solid foods, eating rough and easy to put strange objects in the mouth.
A girl in Ho Chi Minh City choked on her airway due to bone fragments after eating porridge. However, due to not receiving proper first aid, after being taken to the emergency room, the baby was deprived of oxygen to the brain. This causes the girl’s brain to be damaged with sequelae later on.
Children will easily choke while eating solids if parents are not careful
Common mistakes parents make when giving first aid to children:
Put your hand directly into the child’s mouth to remove the strange things
This is very dangerous for the child, because the strange thing can go deeper. In addition, it causes scratching of the pharyngeal mucosa, because the trachea in children is very soft and vulnerable.
A mother looks in a child mouth when the child is chocking
Back patting, stroking the chest to handle foreign body choking
The most common mistake parents make is following folklore. This causes the strange thing to go deeper into the airway. Strong adult flapping force, plus the infant’s inspiratory force only makes the foreign body go deeper.
Parents often follow the habit of patting their children’s chest when they are choking and choke on foreign objects
Use folk tips
Usually, parents will handle choking in the style of feeding their baby a rice ball or fruit. They think this causes the foreign body to follow the rice and fruit down the digestive tract. However, this action would be very dangerous. If the strange thing goes deeper into the airway, especially a sharp object, it will tear the child’s airway.
These are the most common mistakes that few parents notice. Parents should be equipped with first aid knowledge to properly handle foreign objects in their children.
