OBJECTIVE: Tracheobronchial foreign body aspiration is a common pediatric emergency and a leading cause of accidental deaths in children. The diagnosis remains sometimes difficult even with physical examination, medical history, and basic X-rays. This challenge necessitates the performance of endoscopy under general anesthesia, regardless of the potential for serious complications. The benefit of strategies like expiratory chest X-rays to reduce unnecessary endoscopies remains uncertain. We evaluated the effectiveness of expiratory chest X-rays in detecting airway foreign bodies to potentially reduce the need for endoscopies.
METHODS: We retrospectively studied children with suspected foreign body aspiration who had X-ray and endoscopy.
RESULTS: A total of 70 children were included in the study. Out of these, 19 cases (27.1 %) showed pathological findings on standard chest X-rays. However, when expiratory chest X-rays were added, the number of pathological radiographies increased to 37 cases (52.9 %). Out of the 36 foreign bodies that were present, only 2 were not detected. Furthermore, 3 chest X-rays displayed pathological results, while the endoscopies indicated normal findings. Consequently, the overall sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value stood at 94.4 %, 91.1 %, 91.9 %, and 93.9 % respectively.
CONCLUSIONS: The remarkable sensitivity of expiratory chest radiography can eliminate the need for unnecessary endoscopy, but it should be limited to centers lacking access to MDCT. The performance of endoscopy should only be considered when persistent clinical symptoms are observed during auscultation.

Tracheobronchial foreign body (TFB) aspiration is an uncommon but potentially life-threatening event. This case report discusses the successful extraction of a metallic screw aspirated by a 48-year-old woman with intellectual disability, using flexible bronchoscopy through the i-gel® laryngeal mask under general anesthesia. The i-gel® device proved effective in maintaining airway access and facilitating bronchoscopy, emphasizing its utility in challenging cases. The report underscores the significance of careful assessment, skillful intervention, and multidisciplinary teamwork in managing TFB aspirations, especially in uncooperative patients with comorbidities.

Tooth aspiration, while commonly linked to predisposing conditions such as loose teeth, facial surgeries, or injuries, can also affect patients without apparent risk factors. Such small foreign body aspirations may go undiagnosed for many months as patients often tolerate the symptoms, such as chronic cough. However, the protracted course of unaddressed foreign body aspiration has the potential to resemble symptoms of malignancy, including persistent hemoptysis, weight loss, and fatigue. In this report, we detail the case of a 51-year-old man with underlying chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) whose history and symptoms initially suggested lung carcinoma. Further investigation uncovered an aspirated tooth as the culprit. The sequelae of pulmonary complications arising from endobronchial obstruction, such as post-obstructive pneumonia and atelectasis, as demonstrated in our case, further emphasize the importance of prompt detection and management of tooth aspiration.

Chronic cough can be a diagnostic challenge in the pediatric population. Foreign body aspiration without typical signs and symptoms can often be overlooked as a cause of chronic cough in children. Coin aspirations in the trachea typically have a sagittal orientation on an anteroposterior (AP) chest radiograph. We report a rare case of a previously healthy five-year-old girl presenting with a chronic cough for five months caused by a coin with a coronal orientation on an AP chest radiograph. The coin, initially presumed to be lodged in the esophagus, was actually lodged in the cervical trachea, leading to the development of a tracheoesophageal fistula (TEF). Her AP chest radiograph showed a coronal, circular radio-opaque shadow and the lateral view a tangential radio-opaque shadow, prompting an initial evaluation by esophagogastroduodenoscopy, which was normal. She then underwent rigid bronchoscopy, revealing a coin lodged in the trachea along with a TEF. Surgical removal was achieved through an external approach with a vertical tracheotomy and insertion of a tracheostomy tube. Five days later, a repeat rigid bronchoscopy showed a well-healed TEF, and she was successfully decannulated. She was ultimately discharged home on room air and oral feeds. TEF as a complication of a foreign body lodged in the trachea or esophagus is rare but life-threatening. Foreign body aspiration should always be considered in the differential diagnosis when evaluating younger children with chronic cough.

Foreign body aspiration (FBA) is infrequently encountered in the adult population, with major risk factors including advancing age, intoxication, and disorders of the central nervous system. Here, we present a case of FBA in an adult undergoing routine lung cancer screening to review imaging findings and highlight potential pitfalls for the practicing radiologist. A low-dose chest computed tomography (CT) scan was performed for lung cancer screening in a 57-year-old male with a one-month history of worsening dyspnea and cough. An endobronchial lesion was identified in the right bronchus intermedius. A follow-up 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography-computed tomography (18F-FDG PET-CT) revealed hypermetabolic activity in the region of interest, raising concern for malignancy. Bronchoscopy was performed, revealing a nodular mass adjacent to a foreign body in the bronchus intermedius. Histopathologic analysis of the tissue sample revealed the presence of an aspirated foreign body with squamous metaplasia of the respiratory epithelium. Adult FBA is an uncommon clinical entity that may be incidentally observed on a screening chest CT. Relevant multimodality imaging findings are discussed here, along with a review of the accompanying pathologic changes seen with chronic airway impaction.

Tracheobronchial foreign body aspiration (TB-FBA) with subsequent airway obstruction typically occurs in children younger than 4 years. TB-FBA results in significant morbidity and mortality in children requiring urgent recognition and prompt management. Some cases remain more indolent and cause unusual respiratory insults ranging from chronic respiratory symptoms such as persistent cough, wheezing, and recurrent pneumonia to life-threatening airway obstruction. This case report presents a rare case of TB-FBA in an 8-year-old girl with a prolonged history of cough and dyspnea for 15 months despite many medical treatments and a rigid bronchoscopy examination performed by a board-certified pediatric surgeon. The patient was referred to Namazi Hospital\'s Pediatric Interventional Pulmonology Division where fiberoptic bronchoscopic exploration was conducted to remove a foreign body (a 6-cm wheat cluster) from the right lower lobe bronchus. This case report demonstrates the importance of clinical history in the diagnosis of aspirated foreign bodies despite unusual age and normal radiological findings.

BACKGROUND: Tracheobronchial foreign body aspiration (TFBA) is a critical disease in children and is extremely dangerous, even life-threatening. The factors affecting the occurrence and prognosis of TFBA are complex. The purpose of this study is to examine the external and intrinsic factors affecting clinical features of TFBA in West China and propose potential effective intervention measures.
METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of pediatric patients diagnosed with TFBA with foreign bodies (FBs) removed by rigid bronchoscopy under general anesthesia at the otolaryngology department from December 2017 to November 2018. The data included age, sex, clinical symptoms, type and location of FB, guardians, prehospital duration and residence of these pediatric patients.
RESULTS: The ratio of males (72) to females (53) was 1.4:1. Children aged from 1 to 3 years accounted for 76% (95/125) of patients. Cough, continuous fever and dyspnea were the primary symptoms. The right primary bronchus was the most common location of FB detection by rigid bronchoscopy (67 cases, 53.6%). Organic FBs were most common in our study. Guardians of patients significantly differed in the rural (parents 16, grandparents 31) and urban (parents 52, grandparents 26) groups (χ2 = 12.583, p = 0.000). More children in the rural group than in the urban group had a treatment delay longer than 72 h. More children in the group with no history of FB aspiration (12, 25%) than in the group with prior FB aspiration had a treatment delay longer than 72 h.
CONCLUSIONS: Pediatric TFBA is a common emergency in otolaryngology. Age, sex, tracheobronchial anatomy and other physiological elements were defined as intrinsic factors, while guardians, residence, FB species and prehospital time were defined as external factors of TFBA. External and intrinsic factors both influence the occurrence and progression of TFBA. It is extremely important to take effective measures to control external factors, which can decrease morbidity and mortality.

A patient with a total laryngectomy and tracheoesophageal voice prosthesis presented with tracheobronchial aspiration of a Phillips-head screw that was swallowed inadvertently and aspirated around a loose-fitting prosthesis. A modified esophagram showed a screw in the right lung and free leakage of barium from the cervical esophagus around the prosthesis into the tracheobronchial tree. Chest radiographs and CT confirmed a screw in a right lower lobe bronchus with postobstructive pneumonia. When this complication occurs, it is important to extract the foreign body and, if necessary, to adjust or remove the prosthesis to prevent future aspiration pneumonias or foreign body aspiration.