title: Update in the extraction of airway foreign bodies in adults.
abstract: Foreign body (FB) aspiration into the airway is lees common in adults than children. Nevertheless its incidence does not decrease through time. We present clinical relevant aspects of airway FBs on the basis of a selective review of pertinent literature retrieved by a search in the PubMed database. The most common aspirated FBs by adults are organics, especially fragments of bones and seeds. Symptoms usually are cough, chocking and dyspnea. Right localization, especially bronchus intermedius and right lower lobe, is more frequent. Chest radiography can be normal in up to 20% of the cases and FBs can be detected in 26% of the patients. FBs can safely remove in the majority of patients under flexible bronchoscopy. Surgical treatment must be reserved for cases in which bronchoscope fails or there are irreversible bronchial or lung complications.
authors.affiliation: Thoracic Surgery Department, Alvaro Cunqueiro University Clinical Hospital, EOXI Vigo, Spain.
authors.forename: Montserrat
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Blanco Ramos
authors.affiliation: Pneumology Department, Alvaro Cunqueiro University Clinical Hospital, EOXI Vigo, Spain.
authors.forename: Maribel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Botana-Rial
authors.affiliation: Thoracic Surgery Department, Alvaro Cunqueiro University Clinical Hospital, EOXI Vigo, Spain.
authors.forename: Eva
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: García-Fontán
authors.affiliation: Pneumology Department, Alvaro Cunqueiro University Clinical Hospital, EOXI Vigo, Spain.
authors.forename: Alberto
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Fernández-Villar
authors.affiliation: Senior Lecturer in Comprehensive Adult Dental Care, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Santiago de Compostela, A Coruña, Spain.
authors.forename: Mercedes
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gallas Torreira
keywords: Bronchoaspiration; fibrobronchoscopy; foreign body (FB); rigid bronchoscopy