Occurrence of Aerodigestive Foreign Bodies in Children Less Than 12 Years Old in Uganda

Abstract

Objectives: (1) Determine the prevalence and common types of aerodigestive foreign bodies. (2) Determine the nonclinical factors that influence their occurrence among children under 12 years of age. Methods: A case control study between February and October 2012. The study population was all children between 6 months and 12 years old presenting to the ENT clinic at Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital. Consecutive and random sampling was used for cases and controls respectively. The cases were recruited after removal of the foreign body in theater. Information collected included biodata, circumstances surrounding the occurrence of the foreign body, the type of foreign body, and the family’s socioeconomic status. Results: Prevalence was 6.6% with M:F = 2:1. The most common foreign bodies were seeds in the airway and coins in the esophagus. There was a strong association between the type of foreign body and activity of the child at the time of the incident ( P = .001). A middle level socioeconomic status had a significantly lower risk (odds ratio = 0.27, P = .01). Older mothers’ children were protected. In multivariate analysis using the child’s age and sex, mother’s age, and socioeconomic status of the family, females had a risk of 39% compared with the males ( P = .03). Conclusions: The prevalence of aerodigestive foreign bodies is relatively high. Risk factors include age under 5 years, male sex, the child’s activity at the time, and younger age of the mother. A higher socioeconomic status and female sex are protective. Therefore nonclinical factors influence the occurrence of aerodigestive foreign bodies among children.