In a first and unique case, city doctors used laser technology which is generally used to target kidney stones to break a mutton bone stuck in a man’s throat.

The 30-year-old patient ate some mutton at a party on May 11 and felt that something got stuck in his throat. An X-Ray of his neck showed a piece of bone lodged at the junction of the throat and the upper esophagus. The patient visited many hospitals where doctors suggested he undergo neck surgery.

On May 12, the patient then approached the emergency department of CARE Hospitals where a team of ENT, gastroenterology and urology doctors worked on his case. Dr N Vishnu Swaroop Reddy, head of ENT department, said they first tried to remove the bone using an endoscope, but the rough bone was lying horizontally in the food pipe putting pressure on the wall. Any forcible removal could have caused a tear in the food pipe leading to life threatening complications.

Then the doctors decided to use Holmium-Yag laser, which is usually used for kidney stones, to break the bone into two pieces. Dr Bhavani Raju, senior consultant, in the gastroenterology department said they succeeded in partly breaking the piece with the laser, but a bridge of the bone was still left. As there was risk of the laser burning the wall of the food pipe, the remaining bone was crushed into two using ENT endoscope and instruments.

The hospital said that this is the first time ever that such a procedure has been successful in the world. The man has recovered and can take food orally.