Can I Swallow a Roll of Quarters at the Bank
This young schoolgirl turned herself into a real-life 'piggy bank' when she swallowed two coins – with one stuck inside her for more than a year before the other one then piled up on top of it.
Paige Dowling's parents only discovered their four-year-old had had a penny stuck in her throat for months on end when she was spotted swallowing a £1, which settled on top of the other coin in her throat, turning her throat into a money box.
The youngster had been given the £1 coin by her great-gran during a visit but instead of popping it in her pocket decided to swallow it.
Luckily eagle-eyed dad Jayson Dowling spotted the tot, then two, making the deposit and alerted wife Kelly Dowling.
Concerned full-time mum Kelly rang 111 and rushed the tot, who was showing no signs of distress, to hospital in June 2019.
There she was scanned with a metal detector and staff discovered an object in her throat.
An X-ray revealed two circular objects piled on top of one another in her throat and during a three-hour operation stunned doctors unearthed a £1 coin balanced on top of a 1p piece.
Staff believed the penny piece that sliced through her oesophagus had been in her throat for more than a year.
It had been there so long that her oesophagus had grown around it creating a pouch that food sometimes still gets trapped in.
Now 23 months on, Paige has regular check-ups and needs two of her back teeth surgically removing due to the corrosion the penny caused.
Kelly, who is also mum to Bentley Dowling, 10, and six-year-old Mya Dowling, is urging parents to always seek medical help if their child swallows something they shouldn't, even if they're not choking.
Kelly, from Bath, Somerset, said: "When I found out Paige had swallowed two coins and turned herself into a little money box I couldn't believe it.
"It was only because we noticed she'd swallowed the pound coin that doctors noticed the penny had sliced through her oesophagus.
"The trouble was the penny had been in there so long the oesophagus had grown around it so that's what took the time.
"She had a three-hour surgery to take it out as they wanted to get it out without cutting her oesophagus even more.
"They reckon it had been in there for over a year, it's crazy."
Kelly, 31, said she popped to visit her nan on June 25th 2019 along with warehouse worker husband Jayson, 36, and the three children.
The doting great gran, gave each of the children a £1 to treat themselves with.
Instead of pocketing the cash, little Paige for some reason decided to swallow it, sparking the rush to Royal United Hospital's A&E department in Bath.
Kelly said: "We went to my nan's, she always gives them a £1 and it was that £1 Paige swallowed.
"My husband was in the room with her while I was in the kitchen and he called me through saying he thought she'd swallowed it.
"I looked around the living room trying to find it and hoped she'd pass it but I rang 111 too to be sure.
"They advised us to go to hospital and there they put a metal detector on her.
"We were told if it was in the top half she would need an X-ray and if it was down in the bottom half she could go home where she would pass it.
"When they scanned her the alarm went off near her throat, I was so worried.
"I just thought it would have gone to her bottom half and she could pass it but panic stations set in then.
"On the X-ray they could see the pound coin was a couple of centimetres down her throat and then they saw a second object."
Paige was blue-lighted to Bristol Children's Hospital the following day and had another X-ray to check whether the objects had passed, but they were still there so surgeons decided to operate.
During a three-hour op staff discovered the coins lodged in her throat and underwent a delicate procedure to remove them without causing any further damage.
Kelly said: "The next morning they took her down to theatre which was absolutely awful, it was the worst experience of my life seeing her going into surgery.
"It was only during the operation that they saw the penny and the damage it had caused.
"They discovered the penny had cut through her oesophagus, which had then grown around it.
"The pound coin was sat on top of the half of the penny that was still in the oesophagus, so if it had moved slightly it would have stopped her breathing.
"It's terrifying to think what could have happened."
Due to the injury caused by the penny, Paige's oesophagus grew around it creating a pouch called an oesophageal diverticulum.
The pocket-like structure protrudes outward in a weak portion of the oesophageal lining, and can cause issues with food getting stuck in it, which Paige still suffers with occasionally.
Kelly said that Paige is still living with the after-effects of the incident, occasionally struggling with food getting stuck in her throat and also teeth problems.
Kelly said: "Paige still sometimes has trouble with food getting stuck in the pouch and went back to hospital to have it checked out.
"As the penny was in there so long some of her back teeth have been damaged.
"The dentist thinks the metal from the penny has caused this and she needs surgery to have them taken out.
"She's the strongest little monkey going, she's never once moaned about anything."
Since the accident, Kelly is hyper-vigilant of any coins or small objects in the home that could cause damage if swallowed, but admitted it had gotten easier to monitor the older Paige got.
Kelly said: "Since this happened it made me more alert to any money being around, but it's not just money it's anything little.
"She would be given a doll as a present and I'd say 'no she can't have that, it's got little shoes' but it's a lot better now that's she older.
"I would love to know the number of children walking around with coins in them because we didn't have a clue.
"The doctors said it was good in a way that she did swallow the pound coin and we saw it otherwise she would still be walking around with the penny stuck in her."
Kelly is sharing Paige's story to highlight how quickly incidents like this can happen and to urge parents and carers to always seek medical attention.
Kelly said: "If you spot your child has swallowed something I would advise to phone 111 or get up to A&E.
"I knew what 111 was going to say, I knew they'd say take her in, but I just needed that extra bit of reassurance that I was doing the right thing. It's not worth chancing it."
Can I Swallow a Roll of Quarters at the Bank
Source: https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/uk-news/x-ray-reveals-how-girl-20731125
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