Indian fish trader nearly dies after fish jumps down his throat

It was virtually a rebirth for a fish trader from Kanhangad in Kerala as doctors in Mangala Hospital and Mangala Kidney Foundation successfully removed a 13-centimeter-long fish stuck in his windpipe.

On Saturday, Mohammed Kunhi while clenching a live fish with his teeth attempted to free other fish entangled in the fishing net. In the melee, the fish slipped and got stuck in his windpipe. Kunhi was initially rushed to a local hospital and on the doctor’s advice he was shifted to a private hospital in Mangalore. As the hospital lacked sophisticated equipment to remove the fish, he was shifted to Mangala Hospital and Mangala Kidney Foundation at around 7 pm.

“By the time Kunhi came to our hospital, his lungs, due to lack of oxygen, had collapsed and he looked sure to die of aspiration pneumonia,” Dr Ganapathy who led the team in removing the fish from the windpipe said.

The sophisticated equipment in the hospital came in handy to the team. A bronchoscopy revealed the location of fish. Finally opting for the technology used to break kidney stones, the fish was removed through an incision in the throat. This is the third incident in Mangalore where a patient was admitted with a live fish in the windpipe. Two others died of aspiration pneumonia before doctors could remove the fish.