First Aid for Pediatric Airway Foreign Body Obstruction

Pediatric airway foreign body obstruction is a life-threatening emergency, commonly seen in infants and preschool children. Due to the immature development of their swallowing and cough reflexes, foreign bodies can easily enter the airway

and cause obstruction. Therefore, parents and caregivers must master the correct first aid methods to take prompt action in emergency situations and protect the child's life.

I. Symptom identification

1. Sudden choking, severe irritating cough, shortness of breath, hoarseness, cyanosis,and breathing difficulties may occur.

2. If the foreign body is large and blocks the throat or trachea, breathing difficulties,cyanosis, and even asphyxiation and death may occur quickly.

3. If the foreign body passes through the glottis and trachea and enters the bronchi orbronchioles, the choking may be relieved, but complications such as repeated coughing, wheezing, pneumonia, atelectasis, and lung abscess may occur overtime, affecting lung function.

II. First aid methods

For children under one year old:

1. Back slapping method

(1) The rescuer sits down and holds the infant, protecting the infant's head and neck with one hand. Place the infant in a head-down, feet-up position on the rescuer's forearm.

(2) Use the other hand to hold the infant's lower jaw, slightly tilting the head back, and turn the infant to a prone position on the rescuer's arm, with the head lowerthan the body.

(3) The rescuer uses the heel of one hand to give five slaps between the infant's shoulder blades.

(4) Check if the airway obstruction is relieved after each slap. If it is relieved, there is no need to complete all five slaps.

2. Chest Impact Method

(1) The rescuer should sit down and hold the infant with both hands and forearms, then turn the infant onto their back, keeping the infant along the rescuer's arms,with the head lower than the feet, placed on the rescuer's thighs either lengthwise or crosswise.

(2) Perform impact compressions at the level below the infant's nipples. The rescuer should use the middle and index fingers or middle and ring fingers of one hand, placed together, and press vertically downward for five times, with a depth of about one-third of the anteroposterior diameter of the chest.

(3) After each impact, check if the airway obstruction has been relieved. If it has,there is no need to complete all five impacts. If the obstruction remains,continue with five alternating back slaps.

For children over one year old:

Heimlich Maneuver

The rescuer should stand behind the patient, wrap both arms around the patient's waist,make a fist with one hand, and place the thumb side of the fist on the patient's upper abdomen (slightly above the navel). The other hand should hold the fist and give a quick upward and backward thrust to the patient's upper abdomen. The thrust should be rapid and followed by relaxation. Or, the rescuer can stand behind the patient's side, place one arm on the patient's chest to support them, and use the heel of the other hand to give four quick and forceful slaps between the shoulder blades to help expel the foreign object.

III. Preventive Measures

1. Educate children not to put small objects in their mouths or noses.

2. When buying toys for children, especially infants under three years old, do not choose toys with detachable small parts and pay attention to the recommended age on the instructions.

3. Store small items such as buttons, marbles, screws, and coins out of children's reach.

4. Teach children good eating habits, such as not talking, playing, or running with food in their mouths, and not falling asleep with food in their mouths.

5. Do not scold or punish children during meals.

6. Do not feed whole peanuts, sunflower seeds, grapes, gummy candies, or other round and smooth foods to infants under three years old. Remove bones and shells from fish and shrimp before feeding them to children.

7. When children are losing their baby teeth, remind them to spit out the fallen teeth promptly.

The Advanced Infant Obstruction Model from SCMEHE is specifically designed for first-aid training of infant airway obstruction.It highly simulates and restores infant physiological structures with precisedetails, and the operational feel is close to real scenarios. Whether for medical teaching or first-aid skill drills, it can help users quickly master the core skills of obstruction management, making it a practical teaching aid for improving infant first-aid capabilities.