title: Upper airway obstruction and hemoptysis due to a leech infestation in a child.
abstract: This paper presents the case of a 12-year-old child who presented with an 8-day history of cough, respiratory distress, and hemoptysis. He was admitted first to the pediatric intensive care unit to reestablish hemodynamic and respiratory stability. The chest X-ray showed a bilateral alveolar-interstitial syndrome. Four hours after admission, he had a coughing fit, moderately abundant hemoptysis, and a leech appeared in his mouth, which was removed by the mother. Symptoms completely disappeared afterwards. Endoscopy and ear-throat-laryngeal examination done thereafter were normal. The presence of a leech in the larynx has been rarely described in children, but is not a rare cause of hemoptysis. Extraction is imperative and should be performed as soon as the diagnosis is made to avoid a fatal progression. Prevention remains the best treatment.
authors.affiliation: Pediatric Department A, Mother and Child Hospital, Mohammed VI Teaching Hospital, Cadi Ayyad University, Medical School of Marrakesh, Marrakesh, Morocco. Electronic address: ghizlanedraiss@gmail.com.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Draiss
authors.affiliation: Pediatric Department A, Mother and Child Hospital, Mohammed VI Teaching Hospital, Cadi Ayyad University, Medical School of Marrakesh, Marrakesh, Morocco.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Razzouki
authors.affiliation: Pediatric Intensive Care Medicine, Mother and Child Hospital, Mohammed VI Teaching Hospital, Cadi Ayyad University, Medical School of Marrakesh, Marrakesh, Morocco.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Mouaffak
authors.affiliation: Pediatric Department A, Mother and Child Hospital, Mohammed VI Teaching Hospital, Cadi Ayyad University, Medical School of Marrakesh, Marrakesh, Morocco.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bouskraoui
authors.affiliation: Pediatric Intensive Care Medicine, Mother and Child Hospital, Mohammed VI Teaching Hospital, Cadi Ayyad University, Medical School of Marrakesh, Marrakesh, Morocco.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Younous
mesh_terms: D000402:Airway Obstruction / Q000209:etiology*; D000818:Animals; D002648:Child; D005547:Foreign Bodies / Q000150:complications*; D006469:Hemoptysis / Q000209:etiology*; D006801:Humans; D007865:Leeches; D008297:Male