An unusual case of ingestion of a moth cocoon in a 14-month-old girl
Received 9 September 2008 published online 27 March 2009.
Abstract
We present a case report of a 14-month-old girl who ingested a moth cocoon, which resulted in dramatic symptoms of irritability, drooling, and anorexia. Direct laryngoscopy, bronchoscopy, and esophagoscopy under general anesthesia revealed copious, tenaciously adherent, barbed hairs embedded in her tongue and buccal mucosa. Removal of the hairs with irrigation, suction, and brushing was unsuccessful and was eventually abandoned. In the following 48 hours, the girl recovered uneventfully with supportive care. The hairs were subsequently identified as coming from the hickory tussock moth (Lepidoptera: Arctiidae: Lophocampa caryae), which is ubiquitously distributed throughout much of North America. This is the first detailed case report of ingestion of an L caryae cocoon.
aDepartment of Anesthesiology, University Hospitals Case Medical Center, Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospital, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, OH, USA
bDepartment of Otolaryngology—Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospitals Case Medical Center, Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospital, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, OH, USA
cDepartment of Invertebrate Zoology, The Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Cleveland, OH, USA
dDepartment of Ornithology, the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Cleveland, OH, USA
Corresponding author. Department of Anesthesiology, University Hospitals Case Medical Center, 11100 Euclid Avenue, LKSD 5007, Cleveland, OH 44106-5007, USA. Tel.: +1 216 844 7340.
Presented at the 2008 Combined Otolaryngology Spring Meeting in Orlando, FL.
ABSTRACT