Wednesday, September 09, 2009

16 year-old's death with hot dog

Now this is a pretty unusual occurrence, but I thought it might be worth a caution. Kids do choke on food, as do folks on the other end of the age spectrum, with hot dogs being high on the list (I remember during my ER days, pulling a gumball out of a young child’s larynx just in time). But it is pretty unusual to see this in a healthy teen.

An autopsy report on a 16-year-old Spartanburg boy came with a warning from the Cherokee County coroner. "Hot dogs are a choking hazard and should be consumed carefully,” he said
… died as a result of a hot dog lodging in his throat.
Friends at a youth group pool party tried the Heimlich maneuver but it failed.


With all the foody shows on TV showing folks wolfing their food, it behooves us to remind young people that it is important, and potentially life saving, to chew well when eating.

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