Role of Plain Radiography in the Assessment of Ingested Foreign Bodies in the Pediatric Patients

Publication date: Available online 23 October 2014 Source:Seminars in Ultrasound, CT and MRI Author(s): Antonio Pinto , Cecilia Lanza , Fabio Pinto , Roberta Grassi , Luigia Romano , Luca Brunese , Andrea Giovagnoni Ingestion of various types of foreign bodies such as coins, toy parts, jewelry pieces, needles and pins, fish and chicken bones, and button-type batteries is common among children. The curiosity of children and their need to investigate the world around them place them at higher risk for ingestion of foreign bodies. Fortunately, 80% to 90% of ingested foreign objects that reach the stomach will pass uneventfully without intervention. The remainder may become blocked in the esophagus or other region of the alimentary tract, placing the pediatric patient at risk of significant complications such as aspiration, obstruction, bleeding, perforation, fistulization, sepsis and death. The goals of the initial pediatric patient assessment are to identify the type of object ingested, its location in the gastrointestinal tract and the presence of associated complications. Factors reported to increase the risk of complications included a sharp foreign body, a foreign body with a wide diameter, and symptoms. Plain radiographs still play an important role in the assessment of ingested foreign bodies in the pediatric patient: plain films of the neck, chest, and abdomen are very useful in confirming the diagnosis of foreign body ingestion because the majority of ingeste...
Source: Seminars in Ultrasound, CT and MRI - Category: Radiology Source Type: research