September 24, 2009
A woman eating dinner in a retirement community began choking on her food and, despite her efforts to clear her airway, went into respiratory distress and became unconscious. The woman’s airway was occluded by food lodged in her trachea (windpipe), which prevented enough air from flowing in and out of her lungs.
Medic 741 and Chevy Chase Engine 707 were dispatched at about 1855 hours on Thursday, September 24 to render aid. Engine 707 arrived first, found the patient unconscious, and began performing chest compressions and suctioning in an attempt to dislodge the food in her trachea and open her airway. Medic 741 arrived shortly thereafter, took control of the incident, assessed the patient, and continued life saving interventions.
While the engine crew continued chest compressions, the Medic 741 Paramedic and Emergency Medical Technician made attempts to suction the patient’s airway and locate and remove the source of the obstruction. When their suctioning attempts on scene failed to remove the blockage, the crews quickly moved the patient to the medic unit, and continued efforts to open the patient’s airway en route to the hospital. With Engine 707 providing manpower, the Paramedic and crew performed aggressive suctioning, applied oxygen, and used a direct laryngoscopy technique (visualizing the airway using a special instrument that lights the upper airway and magnifies an image of the area) to remove the foreign object. After many attempts, the Paramedic removed several pieces of food from the patient’s trachea. The patient regained consciousness and began breathing normally.
Upon arrival at the hospital, the crews transferred the patient to the emergency department where the patient recovered sufficiently to sit up and speak to the medic and engine crews and hospital staff without assistance.
###
