Overview
- A rickshaw driver, Rajendra Malusare, accidentally swallowed a 19 cm toothbrush while cleaning his tongue and was taken to Medicover Hospitals after local attempts to remove it failed.
- Initial clinic assessment and X‑ray did not locate the plastic brush, and an endoscopy at Medicover confirmed the whole toothbrush lying horizontally in the stomach.
- A team led by Dr Raosaheb Rathod performed a roughly 30‑minute therapeutic endoscopy using a hood on the scope and repeated manoeuvres and patient repositioning to guide the rigid brush past tight sections of the food pipe and extract it intact.
- Follow‑up endoscopy showed no injury to the esophageal sphincters, the patient’s symptoms improved, and he was observed and discharged in stable condition within hours of the procedure.
- Doctors warned that long, rigid objects can cause obstruction or perforation, may not show on X‑ray, and urged people to seek immediate professional care instead of trying home remedies like inducing vomiting.