Aerodigestive and Ear Foreign Bodies at Lumbini Medical College

Abstract


 Introduction: Aerodigestive and Ear foreign bodies are common Ear Nose Throat (ENT) emergencies. They arecommonly encountered by otolaryngologists, paediatricians, and primary care physicians. Objective: The aim ofthis study is to analyze different types of foreign bodies and sociodemographic correlates of self-inflicted foreign body insertion in ear, nose and throat.
 
 Method: Seventy-four patients with aerodigestive foreign body coming to our Hospital over a period of one year, starting from January 1, 2012, were enrolled in the study. Hospital based cross sectional descriptive study was done. Socio-demographic data was collected by history and clinical examination of all those patients. The data collected from 74 patients were entered and analyzed using descriptive and analytical statisticalmethods using SPSS version 17.0.
 
 Result: There were total of 74 cases of ENT foreign body. Male predominance was noted (61%). Foreign body of ear was found to be most frequent (43%) followed by throat (37%) and nose (20%). Foreign body of nose was almost limited in paediatrics population (14 out of 15) whereas in the elderly group foreign body of throat was only found. Seeds, meat bolus or bone or both, insects and cotton bud were the most common foreign bodies. There was significant relation between the type of foreign body and age (p <0.05) and the living foreign body and ear.
 
 Conclusion: Foreign bodies of nose, ear and throat are common in ENT department. They should be timely managed to prevent potential complications.