Life threatening airway obstruction: a hazard of concealed eating disorders.
The ingestion of unusual objects is not uncommon in florid mental illness. Less common is the accidental ingestion of a foreign body which has been used to induce vomiting. A case is reported of complete dysphagia that resulted from impaction of a plastic fork in the hypopharynx. The patient had been attempting to induce vomiting and, as a result of the presentation, was found to be suffering from a previously concealed eating disorder (bulimia). Self induced vomiting is one criterion for the diagnosis of bulimia and a review of the literature indicates that accidental ingestion of large foreign bodies is an increasingly familiar hazard of occult bulimia.
Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Royal Liverpool University Hospital.
T M
TM
Jones
L C
LC
Luke
D000328:Adult; D000402:Airway Obstruction / Q000150:complications*; D002032:Bulimia / Q000150:complications*; D004630:Emergencies; D004947:Esophagus; D005260:Female; D005547:Foreign Bodies / Q000209:etiology*; D006801:Humans; D007013:Hypopharynx