Foreign Body Retrieval

The presence of foreign bodies in the airways may be a life-threatening emergency that requires quick and decisive action. Sometimes the foreign body aspiration may go unnoticed by the patient and the doctors, as may manifest in many ways, such as asthma-like symptoms, recurrent infections or even pulmonary abnormalities (e.g. bronchiectasis or areas of air-trapping). Therefore, the diagnosis of these situations can be complex and requires a high degree of clinical suspicion. Among the complementary tests, chest x-ray may provide us with important information on those radiopaque foreign bodies. However, in other instances a computerized tomography (CT) is necessary to confirm the diagnosis and to determine the physical characteristics and exact location of the foreign body. Since Gustav Killian extracted the first foreign body in 1897 using an esophagoscope, various techniques have been used for this purpose. Due to its larger working channel, rigid bronchoscopy allows an easier handling, removal and treatment of possible complications. Following the invention of the flexible bronchoscope by Shigeto Ikeda, and its subsequent development, this technique has emerged as a less invasive alternative to traditional procedures with encouraging results in selected cases and requiring fewer resources.

Keywords: Aspiration, Basket, Bronchology, CT scan, Chest, Cryoextraction, Flexible bronchoscopy, Fogarty catheter, Forceps, Foreign body, Interventional Pulmonology, Nd-YAG Laser, Rigid Bronchoscopy, X-Ray.