Unusual Foreign Body, a Spoon, in the Esophagus of a Middle-Aged Female: A Case Report and Review of the Literature

Unusual Case of Esophageal Foreign Body: A Whole Mantis Shrimp

Esophageal foreign bodies (FBs) are one of the common emergencies in otolaryngology, usually involving objects accidentally swallowed, and generally do not result in severe respiratory distress. This article presents an extremely rare case of an esophageal FB, where a 44-year-old man accidentally ingested an entire mantis shrimp while sucking its flavored tail, and was sent to the emergency department for severe throat pain and difficulty breathing. We immediately performed a laryngoscopy that revealed the FB that obstructs the entrance of the esophagus, obstructing the glottis due to the long shape of the shrimp. The mantis shrimp had barbs on its shell and trying to remove it intact would cause significant damage to the pharyngeal mucosa. Therefore, we extracted the mantis shrimp in segments under general anesthesia and applied electrocoagulation to stop bleeding from the damaged and bleeding posterior pharyngeal mucosa. As an esophagography was performed the following day, there were no signs of esophageal perforation. Through the detailed description and analysis of this case, our aim is to raise clinical awareness among physicians of such rare occurrences. Most important, appropriate examination and procedures of FBs should be performed based on the type, shape, and location of the FB.

Swallowed Metallic Spoon Causing Doudeno-Jejunal Junction Perforation in a 13-Year-Old Child: Case Report

Background

A child swallowing a long metallic spoon is an extremely rare phenomenon. Foreign bodies longer than 6 cm are unlikely to pass through the gastrointestinal tract spontaneously and require endoscopic or surgical removal in order to avoid associated complications, such as visceral perforations.

Case Details

A 13-year-old child presented with accidental swallowing of a metallic spoon 10 days prior to hospital admission. He had history of loss of appetite, epigastric and left upper quadrant abdominal pain and started to have high grade intermittent fever 11 days after swallowing the spoon. A plain abdominal radiograph revealed a metallic spoon in the mid-abdomen. An exploratory laparotomy revealed an 11 cm long metallic spoon impacted at the duodeno-jejunal junction with walled off perforation and erosion of the mesentery of the colon. The metallic spoon was removed and the perforated site was repaired. The surgery was smooth and the patient recovered fully and was discharged seven days post-operation.

Conclusion

A swallowed long metallic spoon is unlikely to pass spontaneously and should be removed as soon as possible in order to avoid associated complications like impaction, perforation and subsequent peritonitis.