Foreign Body Inhalation in the Adult Population: Experience of 25,998 Bronchoscopies and Systematic Review of the Literature

BACKGROUND: Foreign body aspiration is an uncommon entity in adults. Herein, we describe our experience with flexible bronchoscopy in the removal of tracheobronchial foreign bodies in adults. We also conducted a systematic review of the literature on the topic of foreign body inhalation in adults managed with flexible bronchoscopy. METHODS: The bronchoscopy database (from 1979 to 2014) was reviewed for subjects> 12 y of age with a history of foreign body aspiration managed with flexible bronchoscopy. Demographic, clinical, and bronchoscopy data were collected and analyzed. PubMed was reviewed for studies describing the use of flexible bronchoscopy for foreign body extraction in adults. RESULTS: During the study period, a total of 25,998 flexible bronchoscopies were performed. Of these, 65 subjects (mean age of 32.8 y, 49 males) were identified who had undergone bronchoscopy for foreign body aspiration. Nonresolving pneu-monia (30.6%), direct foreign body visualization (24.6%), and segmental collapse (18.4%) were the most common radiological abnormalities. Foreign bodies were identified in 49 cases during bron-choscopy and successfully removed in 45 (91.8%) subjects with no major complications. Metallic (41%) and organic (25.6%) foreign bodies were the most common. Shark-tooth (44.9%) and alli-gator (32.6%) were the most commonly used forceps in retrieving the foreign bodies. The systemati