title: Acute central airway obstruction:  an occupational hazard: aspiration of crack cocaine.
abstract: Foreign body aspiration is the fourth leading cause of death due to unintentional injuries. In 2004, 4470 people died because of inhalation or ingestion of food and other objects as per the National Safety Council Report. We report a rare case of accidental aspiration of an intact bag of cocaine, presenting with acute central airway obstruction and cardiopulmonary arrest, highlighting the challenges in the diagnosis and management strategies for this entity.
authors.affiliation: Pulmonary Diseases Critical Care Medicine, Respiratory Institute, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, OH, USA. narulat@ccf.org
authors.forename: Tathagat
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Narula
authors.forename: Wissam
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Jaber
authors.forename: Michael S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Machuzak
authors.forename: Thomas R
authors.initials: TR
authors.lastname: Gildea
mesh_terms: D000402:Airway Obstruction / Q000209:etiology*; D001999:Bronchoscopy; D019970:Cocaine-Related Disorders / Q000150:complications*; D016578:Crack Cocaine; D005547:Foreign Bodies / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis; D006323:Heart Arrest / Q000209:etiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D053120:Respiratory Aspiration / Q000209:etiology*; D012131:Respiratory Insufficiency / Q000209:etiology; D014132:Trachea; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D016578:Crack Cocaine