Doctors trying to diagnose a Preston man’s persistent cough found a very unusual reason for its cause.

Hidden deep inside his lung was a toy traffic cone.

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The 47-year-old had been referred to a respiratory clinic and scans showed the toy cone in his lungs.

The British Medical Journal said the postman Paul Baxter had swallowed the Playmobil cone he received on his seventh birthday.

He told doctors he regularly played with and swallowed toy pieces during his childhood. This toy never came back up.

Doctors believe his airways may have been able to remodel and adapt to the presence of the toy in his system.

Four months after having the traffic cone removed the patient’s cough had almost gone and his symptoms improved markedly.