Abstract
The patient was an 1-year-old male infant with a soft palate injury from falling down. Oral bleeding was noted immediately after the accident, and he was treated conservatively by a local doctor. However, two weeks later, he was admitted to the Department of Otolaryngology St. Marianna University Touyoko Hospital with a mucosal fistula on the soft palate and a continuing low grade fever of unknown origin. An endoscopic examination of the nasal cavity did not show any marked pathological changes or any traces of a foreign body. ACT scan revealed no abnormal findings except for the edematous mucosal swelling in the maxillary sinus. Endoscopic observation revealed an wooden foreign body in the palate, which was subsequently removed successfully using the endoscope. Foreign bodies should be removed as soon as possible, because they may become a focus of severe infection. But because of the radiolucency of small wooden foreign bodies, plain radiographs and CT scan are often not useful in imaging the objects. The endoscope provides significantly improved diagnostic and therapeutic options in oral surgery.
