Delhi Doctors Use Laser to Vaporize Stuck Denture, Avoid Major Surgery

This medical breakthrough at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital in New Delhi highlights a sophisticated shift in how complex "foreign body" emergencies are handled, moving away from invasive surgery toward ultra-precise laser technology.

The patient had accidentally swallowed his denture, which got lodged in the upper oesophagus, causing severe respiratory distress and pain. The medical team used a holmium laser to fragment the denture into smaller pieces, then extracted them with a protective overtube to prevent oesophageal damage.

The patient arrived at the hospital with severe respiratory distress and pain in the throat after accidentally swallowing his denture, which got stuck just below the junction of the food pipe and windpipe, an area called the cricopharynx in the upper oesophagus.

He was experiencing significant difficulty in swallowing and severe chest discomfort. Standard extraction methods (using forceps or snares) risked tearing the oesophageal lining, which could lead to severe infection (mediastinitis) or fatal haemorrhage.

Because it was lodged just below the junction of the food pipe and windpipe, the patient was also suffering from respiratory distress.

Imaging studies confirmed that the dental prosthesis had become firmly lodged at a delicate point in the food pipe, where its sharp metallic clasps posed a risk of tearing the lining of the oesophagus.

When traditional endoscopic tools failed to budge the plate, Prof Anil Arora and Dr. Shrihari Anikhindi pivoted to a high-tech solution, using an endoscopic laser beam. Doctors literally "cut" the hard denture material into smaller, manageable fragments while it was still inside the throat.

To prevent the sharp, jagged edges of the broken denture from scratching the oesophagus during removal, a specialised "overtube" was inserted to act as a protective sleeve. Each fragment was then pulled out through the tube, clearing the obstruction entirely.

Calling the case extremely challenging, Anil Arora, Chairman, Institute of Liver, Gastroenterology and Pancreaticobiliary Sciences (ILGPS), Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, said, "This was one of the most difficult foreign bodies we have encountered. Conventional removal techniques like foreign body forceps or a polypectomy snare carried a high risk of injury to the oesophagus."

After initial attempts with conventional forceps proved unsuccessful, the medical team decided to adopt an innovative approach.

Under precise endoscopic guidance, the doctors used a cutting-edge laser beam to carefully fragment the impacted denture into smaller pieces inside the oesophagus in an effort to disengage them from the oesophageal lumen.

A protective overtube was then inserted in the upper oesophagus to protect the surrounding tissues from the fragmented denture while each fragment was safely and meticulously extracted.

Explaining the procedure, Dr Shrihari Anikhindi, Consultant - Gastroenterology, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, said, "The laser allowed us to safely break the denture into smaller fragments. The overtube protected the normal esophagus from sharp edges, enabling us to remove the foreign body without resorting to open surgery, which has considerable morbidity."

- ANI