On February 5th, 2025, a 1-year-old girl choked on puffs and soft vegetables during a febrile seizure. Protocol was followed. LifeVac successfully dislodged the obstruction on its second attempt. The child's grandmother described the incident as follows:
“Choking occurred around 6pm. She was at home in her highchair eating finger food - puffs and soft vegetables. She had a slight fever associated with teething. Never had a seizure. The environment was calm. This incident happened quickly. Mom turned her attention to another child for a split second and when she looked back, the child looked off/odd/still. Mom noticed she wasn't breathing, pulled her out, and checked her mouth. Because of the foaming, it was too slippery to remove food that was in the back of her throat. She became unresponsive; turned her over, did back thrusts, screamed for family. Thrusts didn't work and she is too little to do Heimlich. We pulled out LifeVac and called 911 and the nurse next door. With two pulls, the airway was cleared. The baby immediately took full breaths. The nurse did sternum rubs to get her crying, and an ambulance took her to the hospital. The hospital staff think it was a febrile seizure that occurred while she was eating. Life Vac saved her life!! Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
My elderly father had IBM and developed dysphagia which is common for this disease. On the Myositis support group, someone suggested LifeVac, as it has been used on their loved one. Choking is an awful event that claims so many lives with this disease. So, when I ordered it, I ordered it for my father, my grandchildren, and my home. Never in my wildest dreams, did I ever think it would be used....”
Judith C.
