A one-year-old child in Vadodara, Gujarat, was found to have a foreign object lodged in his airway after being treated for pneumonia for nearly two months without improvement. Doctors discovered the cause after further evaluation revealed an obstructing LED bulb inside the child’s lung, highlighting the diagnostic challenges of persistent respiratory symptoms in young children.
The patient, a one-year-old boy, was brought to a government-run tertiary care facility in Vadodara after prolonged cough, fever, and cold. Pediatricians at GMERS Medical College and Hospital initially managed the case as pneumonia, a common lower respiratory tract infection in children.
Despite receiving standard antibiotic therapy, the child’s symptoms persisted. The lack of response prompted clinicians to reconsider the diagnosis and investigate alternative causes. Persistent pneumonia unresponsive to treatment often signals an underlying issue such as airway obstruction or recurrent aspiration.
After nearly eight weeks of unresolved symptoms, doctors ordered a chest X-ray to assess for complications or alternative diagnoses. Imaging revealed a foreign body lodged in the right bronchus. The obstruction reduced airflow to the right lung and placed the lung at risk of collapse, explaining the chronic respiratory symptoms.1
ENT specialists performed a bronchoscopy under general anesthesia to locate and remove the object. The procedure confirmed the presence of a small LED bulb measuring approximately one centimetre in diameter. Surgeons successfully removed the object without complications. Following the procedure, the child was monitored in intensive care and showed rapid clinical improvement.1
Dr Hiren Soni, Head of Department of ENT, GMERS, Vadodara, told The Indian Express,
The child was suffering from complaints of continuous fever, cough and cold since the last one and a half months. For treatment, the parents of the child had consulted many private hospitals, where he was also treated for pneumonia. Despite receiving initial medical care, the symptoms did not improve significantly. Considering the persistent symptoms and clinical condition, the patient’s family decided to bring him for further treatment at GMERS Gotri in Vadodara.
Dr. Hiren Soni, Head of Department of ENT, GMERS, Vadodara
Foreign body aspiration is a well-recognized but frequently missed cause of chronic cough and recurrent pneumonia in toddlers. Young children commonly explore their environment orally and have narrower airways, increasing the risk of aspiration. When a foreign object remains lodged in the bronchial tree, it can cause repeated infections, localized inflammation, and lung collapse, all of which resemble pneumonia clinically and radiologically.2
Due to timely diagnosis, bronchoscopic intervention, and ICU care, the child’s life was saved and the condition improved successfully under the supervision of the treating doctors… It was a rare case of a child having aspirated an LED bulb.
Dr Hiren Soni, Head of Department of ENT, GMERS, Vadodara
1 . Mîndru, Daniela Elena, Gabriela Păduraru, Cristina Daniela Rusu, Elena Țarcă, Andreea Nicoleta Azoicăi, Sorin Tudor Roșu, Andrei Ștefan Curpăn, Ioana Maria Ciomaga Jitaru, Ioana Andreea Pădureț, and Andrei Cosmin Luca. “Foreign Body Aspiration in Children: Retrospective Study and Management Novelties.” Medicina 59, no. 6 (2023): 1113. https://doi.org/10.3390/medicina59061113.
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