Two Cases of Foreign Bodies in the Hypopharynx and Esophagus Removed by Transcervical Approach

Abstract

In this case report, we present two cases in which migrating foreign bodies, a partial denture and a fish bone, were successfully removed from the hypopharynx and esophagus by transcervical incision. The first patient was a 55-year-old male who presented with the feeling of a lump in the throat after accidental swallowing of a partial denture. Although the endoscopist could visualize the foreign body and tried to remove it with the flexible endoscope, the ingested foreign body failed to come within the grasp of the endoscopic forceps. Therefore, the migrating foreign body was removed by transcervical incision. The second patient was a 62-year-old male who presented with odynophagia after accidentally swallowing a fish bone. The fish bone could not be visualized by endoscopic examination, but was clearly detected by three-dimensional-CT imaging. The fish bone was then successfully removed surgically by a transcervical incision. Recently, in most cases, foreign bodies in the hypopharynx and esophagus have been removed using a flexible endoscope. However, in the management of ingested foreign bodies, removal by transcervical incision should be considered in case of any difficulties in endoscopic removal.