Cuerpos extraños alojados en las vías aérea y digestiva. Diagnóstico y tratamiento

Abstract

Introduction. Foreign body aspiration is one of the most common accidents in childhood morbidity and mortality. 3,9 This problem is caused, among other reasons by children’s curiosity, by immaturity of the swallowing mechanism and by anatomical narrowing of the pathway where most of the foreign bodies become. 4,5,22 Material and methods. This report describes the types of objects lodged in the airway and in the digestive tract; the time and the method of extraction, treated at the Hospital for Children in Toluca, from January 2008 to April 2009. It is a cross-sectional, retrospective and descriptive study. 82 patients who underwent laryngoscopy, bronchoscopy or panendoscopy, of foreign bodies lodged in either airway or digestive tract. Patients’ average age was two years; male sex predominated with 47 patients (57%), 35 female patients (43%). Procedures performed: laryngoscopy in 54 patients (67%), bronchoscopy, 19 (23%) and panendoscopy 9 (10%). Most procedures were done in an average time of 5 to 10 minutes. Results. The following objects were found: coins (65.8%); peanuts (7.3%); metal disk, fish bone, plastic cap (3.6%), metal cross, apple seed, grain corn (2.4%), crayon and pine branch (1.2%). A high percentage of foreign bodies were coins in the esophagus removed by direct laryngoscopy in a procedure lasting between 2 and 10 minutes. The only complication was glottic edema secondary to manipulation in one patient. Conclusion. The importance of a prompt removal of foreign bodies is the priority of maintaining an open airway, given its closeness to the digestive tract.