Unusual calcification of cricoid cartilage masquerading as foreign body in esophagus.

Abstract

THERE have been numerous reports of foreign bodies of the esophagus and objects masquerading as foreign bodies of the esophagus. Manning 1 reported a case of calcified cervical node masquerading as a foreign body of the esophagus wherein a patient swallowed a bone (lamb) and an A-P roentgenogram showed an object thought to be the bone. The patient manifested clinical evidence of a bone or some sort of foreign body below the clavicle and behind the sternum. On esophagoscopy a whitish area was seen and grasped with grasping forceps without bringing out the foreign body. The final conclusion of his case was that a cervical node had calcified from some cause and was masquerading sufficiently as a foreign body to merit esophagoscopy. REPORT OF CASE J. N. M., aged 62, a farmer, entered the office on Dec. 7, 1953, with a complaint of pain in the throat. Pain was located