Saving a child who drowned and stopped breathing after falling into a bucket of air-conditioning wastewater

The patient weighed about 12kg, was about 90cm tall, and loved playing in water. While there were guests at home, the child went alone to the gable end of the house, where there was a bucket of air-conditioner wastewater, about 40-45cm high, 40cm wide at the mouth, containing about 10-15cm of water.

When the family discovered it, the baby had turned purple and stopped breathing. The father quickly held the baby upside down and shook him. But luckily, more importantly, the family had first aid knowledge and arrived in time and quickly performed the initial first aid steps. After about 5-7 minutes, the baby vomited water and food, and started breathing again, although he was still in a coma.

Immediately, the child was taken to the district hospital in a state of having a pulse, was intubated and given an oxygen bag to support breathing, and transferred to the Pediatric Center, Bach Mai Hospital for further treatment.

At the Pediatric Center, the chest X-ray results showed that the baby had signs of lung damage due to aspiration. The child was sedated, put on a ventilator, and actively resuscitated.

Specialist II Doctor Pham Cong Khac, Pediatric Center, said: "Fortunately, the baby's family has a family member who is a medical worker, so the initial treatment was timely. This is an important factor in saving the baby's life."

In general emergency cases for children, Dr. Khac recommends applying the principle of first clearing the airway, then giving mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and chest compressions.

Specifically, when encountering a case of a child drowning, quickly move the victim out of the danger zone to the nearest safe location. Carefully place the child on a hard, flat, and sturdy surface. Keep the child's head tilted back and lift the chin to clear the airway. Next, perform 5 mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, then continue to perform the cycle of 30 chest compressions followed by 2 mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

The bucket of water the patient fell into.

When performing chest compressions, do not press too hard to avoid damaging the ribs and lungs. Continue alternating chest compressions and mouth-to-mouth resuscitation until the child responds and begins breathing. Take the child to the emergency room immediately.

Specialist Doctor II Pham Cong Khac, Pediatric Center, Bach Mai Hospital, warns that in the summer, children love to play in water. Not only are ponds, lakes, rivers and streams dangerous, but even water containers in the house such as basins, buckets, mini swimming pools, aquariums, etc. also pose a high risk of drowning.

A baby only needs 10cm of water and a few seconds of adult inattention to fall into a life-threatening situation. Therefore, parents should never let children play alone near water, and should cover and store water containers high. Children need adult supervision when swimming.

This expert also warns that when giving first aid, do not turn a child upside down or carry them on your shoulder and run around when they are drowning. This action can easily slow down the first aid process and cause further injury to the child.

At the same time, localities need to increase communication activities and first aidtraining for the community. Children should learn to swim as early as possible.

Source: https://nhandan.vn/cuu-song-tre-duoi-nuoc-ngung-tho-do-nga-vao-xo-dung-nuoc-thai-dieu-hoa-post881249.html