Patient's question:
A nine-month-old child accidentally swallowed a watermelon seed, which could be dangerous. After eating, everything seemed fine with no abnormalities. The child fell asleep for a while, and then it was noticed that the child kept coughing as if something was stuck in their throat.Doctor's answer:
Your situation. If the seed of the watermelon enters the gastrointestinal tract, it will usually be expelled on its own and will never cause intestinal obstruction. However, if it is accidentally inhaled into the trachea, the problem becomes more serious. Foreign bodies in the trachea are generally difficult to expel on their own, and there may be breathing difficulties, requiring a bronchoscope to remove them. Your child is too young, and the difficulty of removing the foreign body with a bronchoscope is high. If the bronchoscope cannot remove it, then surgery will be necessary.