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My 6 Year Old Son Choked Two Weeks Ago On
Question: My 6 year old son choked two weeks ago on a piece of chicken nugget. I had to perform the Heimlich maneuver on him. Everything came out and he was fine. Two days later I took him to the ER because he was complaining about throat pain. He tested positive for strep throat. He has since then finished his antibiotics. But he still does not want to eat any solid foods.( not even things he enjoys). He says he canât swallow(I donât know if itâs because he canât or heâs scared) He also complained he canât inhale air through his mouth. He has lost a tremendous amount of weight in the past 2 weeks and it is concerning. What could it be?
Brief Answer:
likely he is scared
Detailed Answer:
HI, thanks for using healthcare magic
It is likely that he is scared and it is understandable to be scared after a traumatic event like choking, it can happen to anyone but he needs to work through it or it would affect his nutritional status.
If he can use liquids then he can swallow because he will need to swallow the liquids as well.
The mouth is used to breath when the nose is blocked (eg if a person has the cold or allergies or there is a physical block in the nose eg polyps). Most breathing occurs with the nose.
If there is enough space for liquids then there would be enough space for air to pass through if he needs to breath through is mouth ( if nose blocked)
Strep throat does not cause any long term changes to the throat.
If you want to make sure that the infection has resolved, then he can be assessed for this.
It is important to let him know that it is okay to be scared after an episode of choking but it will not likely happen again. Point out that he is swallowing liquids okay and the liquids have to go through the same space as the solids.
He might feel better starting off with mashed foods, once tolerated, then the food consistency can change.
I hope this helps, feel free to ask any other questions
likely he is scared
Detailed Answer:
HI, thanks for using healthcare magic
It is likely that he is scared and it is understandable to be scared after a traumatic event like choking, it can happen to anyone but he needs to work through it or it would affect his nutritional status.
If he can use liquids then he can swallow because he will need to swallow the liquids as well.
The mouth is used to breath when the nose is blocked (eg if a person has the cold or allergies or there is a physical block in the nose eg polyps). Most breathing occurs with the nose.
If there is enough space for liquids then there would be enough space for air to pass through if he needs to breath through is mouth ( if nose blocked)
Strep throat does not cause any long term changes to the throat.
If you want to make sure that the infection has resolved, then he can be assessed for this.
It is important to let him know that it is okay to be scared after an episode of choking but it will not likely happen again. Point out that he is swallowing liquids okay and the liquids have to go through the same space as the solids.
He might feel better starting off with mashed foods, once tolerated, then the food consistency can change.
I hope this helps, feel free to ask any other questions
Note: For further queries related to your child health, Talk to a Pediatrician. Click here to Book a Consultation.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Answered by
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