Foreign bodies in aerodigestive tract are frequent occurrence and may lead to life threatening situation due to obstruction caused in respiratory passages.
Foreign bodies (FBs) in aerodigestive tract are frequent occurrence and may lead to life threatening situation due to obstruction caused in respiratory passages. In adults, food is by to make the most common foreign body of the aerodigestive tract. Young children exploring their environments with their mouths are at risk for the ingestion and aspiration of small not-edible objects.
Oesophageal foreign bodies may cause a lot of symptoms ranging from odynophagia or dysphagia to complete oesophageal obstruction with overflow of secretions and aspiration. Sometimes respiratory distress or stridor occurs due to compression of the trachea wall by large objects lodged in the oesophagus.
Foreign body aspiration (FBA) is a serious health problem in paediatric patients causing significant morbidity and mortality. A high index of suspicion and timely intervention can reduce morbidity as well as mortality especially in the paediatric age group. Time lag between the aspiration and expert attention is very important with regard to overall morbidity and mortality.
During the time, many treatments for removal of airway and oesophageal foreign bodies have been proposed but rigid endoscopy has proven to be the safest and most efficient therapy. Flexible endoscopes have burdens utility and represent the best method for retrieving objects which have passed into the stomach and halted in progression, but limited by the types of instruments available to grasp the foreign body.