Negative pressure pulmonary edema following choking on a cookie.

A 12-year-old boy developed severe acute respiratory distress during a school break requiring resuscitative measures. The episode started shortly after a short choking episode with a cookie. History, physical examination, laboratory results, chest X-ray, and clinical course supported the diagnosis of negative pressure pulmonary edema (NPPE). NPPE occurring outside a hospital setting, especially following a short episode of choking on a cookie, is rarely reported in children. Understanding the pathophysiological mechanisms contributing to pulmonary edema can help in distinguishing NPPE from other causes of fulminant respiratory distress, and especially from other causes of noncardiogenic pulmonary edema. Pediatr Pulmonol. 2016;51:E25-E27.