Foreign body in the esophagus: a review

Difficult oesophageal foreign body removal: a novel surgical approach to a complex situation

BACKGROUND

Ingested foreign bodies pose a unique challenge in medical practice, especially when lodged in the oesophagus. While endoscopic retrieval is the standard treatment, certain cases require more innovative approaches.

METHODS

This paper reports the case of a patient who intentionally ingested a butter knife that lodged in the thoracic oesophagus. After multiple endoscopic attempts, a lateral neck oesophagotomy, aided using a Hopkins rod camera and an improvised trochar as a protective port, was performed.

RESULTS

The foreign body was successfully extracted without causing oesophageal perforation. The patient was made nil by mouth, with nasogastric feeding only until a swallow assessment after one week. The patient was discharged and recovered well.

CONCLUSION

This case illustrates a successful, innovative approach to removing a foreign body in a high-risk patient, highlighting the significance of adaptability in surgical practice. It emphasises the need for individualised approaches based on the patient's history, the nature and location of the foreign body, and associated risks.

Internal drainage of retropharyngeal abscess secondary to esophageal foreign bodies: a case series

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES

Foreign body oesophagus is a commonly seen emergency in ENT. It is seen both in children and adults. When sharp bony foreign bodies such as chicken, fish, and mutton bone gets impacted in the oesophagus, it predisposes the patient to various complications. The foreign body can migrate extraluminally with time and cause retropharyngeal abscess.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Retrospective study over a period of 6 months from November 2019 to April 2020 of patients with foreign body oesophagus. We came across 20 patients with oesophageal foreign bodies and five of them had associated retropharyngeal abscess. Rigid esophagoscopy with foreign body removal and internal drainage of pus through the oesophageal rent followed by conservative management with intravenous antibiotics based on culture and sensitivity was done.

RESULTS

Patients improved drastically as the pus drained into the oesophagus via the rent in the posterior oesophageal wall and did not require an external incision and drainage. They were discharged in a week.

CONCLUSION

Removal of partial extraluminally migrated foreign body oesophagus and internal drainage of the abscess followed by nasogastric feeds till the rent resolves and intravenous pus culture-sensitive antibiotics fastens patient recovery and reduces the morbidity associated with external incision and drainage and oesophageal rent repair.

Multiple organ dysfunction caused by a foreign body in the esophagus

We present the case of a 71-year-old patient who was admitted to the medical intensive care unit in a state of multiple organ dysfunction. After the fourth day of applying all needed life-saving measures (vasopressor stimulation, mechanical ventilation, continuous dialysis treatment, broad spectrum antibiotic therapy, and other supportive measures), nonspecific heteroanamnestic data revealed that the patient had been having a persistent difficulty in swallowing liquids and food for a few days prior to hospital admission. After performing additional radiological and endoscopic diagnostic procedures, a foreign body was detected; a steel wire that had a length of approximately 6cm and was bent in a half had penetrated the esophagus and was projected into the seventh neckline. We managed to evacuate the foreign body endoscopically without further complications, and we stabilized our patient using additional therapeutic measures as needed.

Ingested sharp foreign body presented as chronic esophageal stricture and inflammatory mediastinal mass for 113 weeks: Case report

Introduction

Impacted foreign bodies in the esophagus have the potential to cause serious complications. Ingested sharp objects carry the risk of acute complications as: perforation, acute mediastinitis, and acute bleeding. Rarely, such foreign bodies might migrate through the esophageal wall and present as chronic esophageal foreign body.

Case presentation

We present a case of a 36-month-old girl presented with solid food dysphagia and regurgitation proved to be secondary to esophageal stricture after 26 months of accidental ingestion of aluminum can tab which has migrated through the wall of the upper esophagus into the mediastinum. After two trials of endoscopic treatment; she underwent thoracotomy and partial esophagectomy. Multiple trials of dilation and Mitomycin C injection were followed because of re-stricture.

Conclusion

Foreign body impaction or secondary stricture needs to be considered in the differential diagnosis of children presenting with new onset dysphagia and regurgitation. Metallic Foreign body might be even radiolucent. Practitioners should keep a high index of suspicion for a retained esophageal FB in the child with gastrointestinal or respiratory symptoms that do not respond to standard therapy.

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Foreign body impaction needs to be considered in the differential diagnosis of dysphagia and regurgitation.

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Metallic FBs might be even radiolucent, and X-ray might not be enough to exclude FB ingestion.

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Impacted FB in the esophagus may remain asymptomatic for some time and become symptomatic only when complications develop.

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Chronic esophageal foreign body can lead to complications that may enforce the physicians to go for aggressive surgeries.

Fish Bone Foreign Body: The Role of Imaging

Introduction  Fish bone foreign body (FFB) impaction in the upper aerodigestive tract is a common cause for emergency department referral. Its management varies in both diagnosis and treatment paradigms. Fish bone foreign bodies are more commonly found in the oropharynx in cases of patients < 40 years old, and in the esophagus in cases of patients > 40 years old. Symptoms are typically non-indicative for the location of the FFB, with the exception of foreign body sensation at/superior to the cervical esophagus. A lack of findings during the physical examination is routinely followed by imaging, with computed tomography (CT) being the preferred modality. In practice, many patients undergo unnecessary imaging studies, including CT scans.

Objectives  To identify patients with suspected fish bone impaction who do not require CT imaging and can be safely discharged.

Data Synthesis  We have searched the PubMed database for the following medical subject headings (MeSH) terms: fish bone , fish foreign body AND oropharynx , hypopharynx , esophagus , flexibleesophagoscopy , and rigidesophagoscopy . Our search in the English language yielded 32 papers. Case reports were included, since they highlighted rare and serious complications.

Conclusion  In patients > 40 years old suspected of fish bone impaction, non-contrast CT is recommended and should be urgently performed, even in the presence of ambiguous symptoms. However, in patients < 40 years old presenting within 24 hours from ingestion, imaging has little diagnostic value due to the low probability of esophageal fish bones. For this specific subgroup, in the absence of clinical findings, discharge without imaging studies may be considered safe.

Salvage technique for endoscopic removal of a sharp fish bone impacted in the esophagus using a transparent cap and detachable snares

A sharp, impacted fish bone in the esophagus is an indication for urgent endoscopy. Endoscopic removal of such an object is a challenging task. An endoscopic protector hood is then used to remove the object. However, an endoscopic hood protector is not always available. In a patient with a large hiatal hernia, the protector hood may not return to the original shape when it passes through the gastroesophageal junction and therefore may not properly protect the esophageal mucosa from the sharp foreign body. In our case, it was impossible to deploy the endoscopic hood protector through the gastroesophageal junction despite multiple attempts. We propose an alternative solution for such cases. We safely removed a large sharp-edged flat fish bone that was folded and compressed using a detachable snare after releasing and pushing the fish bone into the stomach using an endoscope equipped with a transparent cap used for dilating the esophageal wall. This method of using an endoscopic cap and detachable snare is a safe, useful alternative for endoscopically removing a large sharp-edged flat foreign body from the upper gastrointestinal tract. This alternative technique has not been reported in the English medical literature.

Diagnosis and endoscopic management of upper gastrointestinal foreign bodies

INTRODUCTION

The objective is to evaluate the diagnosis of foreign body (FB) ingestion and report on the endoscopic management in Taiwan.

METHODS

This retrospective study enrolled 159 adult patients with confirmed diagnosis of upper gastrointestinal FBs who received endoscopic management in the emergency department.

RESULTS

The patients' mean age was 57.0 ± 19.2 years, and 66 (37.7%) of the patients were 65 years or older. Majority had a clear history and symptoms of FB ingestion. However, 9 (5.7%) initially ignored the accidental swallowing of FBs and were diagnosed late. The mean time spent for diagnosis was 1.8 days in those with uncertain history. Only 47.1% of those with radiographic studies had positive findings. Fish bones, press-through package and dentures were the most common culprits in this population of Asian elderly. Majority of FBs were located in the esophagus, especially in the upper third. Endoscopic FB extraction was successful in 96.9% of cases, while surgery was required in only 5 patients. The complication rate was 6.9%, including mucosal laceration (n = 10) and suspected perforation (n = 1), all of which were successfully managed conservatively. There was no death due to FB ingestion or endoscopy.

CONCLUSIONS

In FB ingestion, history usually points toward the diagnosis. Patients with an uncertain history are usually diagnosed late, and plain radiography cannot reliably predict the presence of FB. Endoscopic management is safe and effective for FBs.

Accidental swallowing of orthodontic expansion appliance key

Ingestion of a foreign object, including a dental object, can lead to a trip to the emergency room. This article describes the accidental swallowing of a key that was used to activate a rapid maxillary expander. An orthodontic patient swallowed the key while trying to activate the appliance at home. The object's trajectory was followed on radiographs until it was eliminated. Possible clinical complications, legal implications of this situation, and practices for prevention are described.

Protein energy malnutrition revealing an esophageal foreign body

It is not unusual for a foreign body to be swallowed and be lodged in the esophagus. It is however, very unusual for such a foreign body to remain lodged for a period of 8 months. This particular case, a 15-month-old male infant, is under focus because of the time length the foreign body remained in the esophagus without local complications, what is unusual is a protein energy malnutrition complication. The neck and chest X-ray permitted the foreign body identification. The management of esophageal foreign body requires a multidisciplinary approach among otorhinolaryngologist, radiologist and pediatrician.

Removal of a sewing needle from an occult esophageal ingestion in a 9-month-old

A healthy 9-month-old boy presented with a 1-month history of cough. A chest x-ray showed a linear metallic foreign body (FB) lying transversely in the posterior mediastinum. Computed tomographic scan confirmed the location and size of the metallic FB and also revealed a large pericardial effusion that was corroborated by echocardiogram. The patient underwent a right thoracotomy revealing a normal esophagus without mediastinitis and a 12-mm needle in the posterior mediastinum embedded in the pericardium with the sharp end abutting the left atrium. The needle was extracted uneventfully, and his postoperative course was unremarkable. The diagnosis and treatment for this case are discussed along with a review of the literature.

[Foreign body perforation of the thoracic esophagus]

BACKGROUND

Esophageal perforation due to foreign body (FB) ingestion is an unusual occurrence. This study aims to define diagnostic difficulties of esophageal perforation by FB.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

A chart review of patients on our service with FB esophageal perforation was carried out. Diagnosis of perforation was made by CT scan and/or esophagoscopy. Surgery was indicated when a FB could not be removed endoscopically or on a case-by-case basis according to clinical/laboratory, radiologic, and/or endoscopic findings.

RESULTS

Seven patients (age range: 27 to 80 years) were admitted for esophageal FB perforation. All patients presented with dysphagia. Two patients presented with signs of sepsis more than 24 hours after FB ingestion. Perforation was diagnosed at initial evaluation in five cases (three by endoscopy, two by CT) and after FB extraction in two cases. Six patients underwent surgery (suture repair: n=4; esophageal exclusion: n=1; mediastinal drainage: n=1). Five surgeries were performed at the initial diagnosis and one after failure of medical management. Mortality was zero; one patient developed esophageal fistula.

CONCLUSION

Diagnosis of FB esophageal perforation is difficult and is delayed in up to a quarter of patients. The perforation can be due to the FB itself or may be incurred during endoscopic extraction. Both CT and endoscopy are necessary for diagnosis and treatment. Most patients require surgical intervention.