For Rajendra Malusare, September 29 started like any other morning. The 53-year-old rickshaw driver from Shiravali village, near the Pen-Khopoli Road, was brushing his teeth when things went wrong.
“I brush my teeth and used to clean my tongue too using the toothbrush. Suddenly, the brush I was using on my tongue slipped and went down my throat,” Malusare said at a press conference.
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He tried to pull it out but couldn't, and when he called for help, his voice barely came out. “Fortunately my daughter arrived to see what was the matter. I explained through actions what had happened, and my daughter tried to remove the brush, putting a hand inside my mouth. Yet, she could not,” he said.
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The family went to a neighbour, who took them to a doctor. With the brush still stuck, Malusare was taken to Medicover Hospitals in Navi Mumbai.
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‘A Very Unusual Medical Emergency'
He reached the hospital three to four hours later with mild abdominal pain. An endoscopy found the entire 19-cm toothbrush, about 7 inches long, lodged in his stomach.
“A toothbrush is a long, rigid object that can be difficult to manoeuvre through the digestive tract and may cause injury or become stuck at its narrower passages,” said Dr Raosaheb Rathod, consultant gastroenterologist, hepatologist and therapeutic endoscopist, who led the medical team.
Stuck Twice on the Way Out
Doctors planned a 30-minute endoscopic procedure under short general anaesthesia. “The procedure was challenging because the toothbrush was hard, straight and lying horizontally in the stomach, making it difficult to grasp and manoeuvre through the natural curves of the digestive tract,” Dr Rathod said.
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The team used a hood fitted to the endoscope's tip to grip one end of the brush. It got stuck first where the stomach meets the food pipe, and then again near the throat. After repeated attempts and changes in the patient's position, doctors pulled it out whole through his mouth.
A follow-up endoscopy showed no injury to either end of his food pipe. Malusare, who entered the operation theatre at 2:40 pm, was back home by late evening.
“Today, I use the toothbrush only to clean my teeth, not my tongue. I was scared I would be unable to breathe when this happened. I am thankful to God and everybody else who helped me that I can see another Diwali,” he said.
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Doctors' Advice
Doctors said anyone who swallows a large object should get medical help immediately. Trying to vomit or pushing it down with food can injure the throat or food pipe, cause bleeding or lodge the object deeper.
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