A patient accidentally swallows a crown during a procedure and shows no signs of acute respiratory distress. What is the most appropriate next step?

When an object is swallowed or aspirated WITHOUT current signs of airway obstruction (no acute respiratory distress), the appropriate next step is to obtain imaging (chest X-ray, sometimes also abdominal X-ray) to locate the object and determine whether it has entered the airway (even asymptomatically) or the GI tract, guiding further management. The Heimlich maneuver is reserved specifically for active, symptomatic choking/airway obstruction.