Esophageal foreign bodies: an experience with rigid esophagoscope in Otolaryngology

Authors

  • Rita Peça Unidade Local de Saúde Santa Maria, EPE, Lisboa, Portugal
  • Mariana Correia Unidade Local de Saúde Santa Maria, EPE, Lisboa, Portugal
  • Bernardo Baptista Unidade Local de Saúde Santa Maria, EPE, Lisboa, Portugal
  • Mafalda Correia de Oliveira Unidade Local de Saúde Santa Maria, EPE, Lisboa, Portugal
  • Paulo Pereira Unidade Local de Saúde Santa Maria, EPE, Lisboa, Portugal
  • Ana Rita Santos Unidade Local de Saúde Santa Maria, EPE, Lisboa, Portugal
  • Mariana Calha Unidade Local de Saúde Santa Maria, EPE, Lisboa, Portugal
  • Leonel Luís Unidade Local de Saúde Santa Maria, EPE, Lisboa, Portugal

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.34631/sporl.3163

Keywords:

impacted foreign bodies, esophagus, rigid esophagoscopy

Abstract

Esophageal foreign body (FB) impaction is a medical emergency due to its potential complications. This is a single-center retrospective review of 47 cases of esophageal FB impaction managed with rigid esophagoscopy at a tertiary care hospital between 2013 and 2023. Data on demographics, presentation and complications were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Chi-square, Kruskal-Wallis tests and multivariate logistic regression. Patients had a mean age of 52 years, with 85.1% being adults. Globus sensation (80.9%) and odynophagia (61.7%) were the most common symptoms. Fish bones were the leading FB type in adults (40.0%) and coins predominated in children (58.0%). Complications occurred in 40.4% of cases. Significant associations were observed between object size, delayed presentation and complications (p< 0.05). Rigid esophagoscopy is the gold-standard for managing esophageal foreign bodies in the cricopharyngeal and cervical esophagus. Our study suggests that early intervention is critical, particularly for patients presenting with identified risk factors.

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Published

2026-06-10

How to Cite

Peça, R., Correia, M., Baptista, B., Correia de Oliveira, M., Pereira, P., Santos, A. R., … Leonel Luís. (2026). Esophageal foreign bodies: an experience with rigid esophagoscope in Otolaryngology. Portuguese Journal of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, 64(2), 183–187. https://doi.org/10.34631/sporl.3163

Issue

Vol. 64 No. 2 (2026): June

Section

Original Article

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Copyright (c) 2026 Rita Peça, Mariana Correia, Bernardo Baptista, Mafalda Correia de Oliveira, Paulo Pereira, Ana Rita Santos, Mariana Calha, Leonel Luís

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.