Abstract
A foreign body was accidentally inhaled by a tracheotomized 3-year-10-monthold girl with cerebral palsy. She did not shown any symptoms. The foreign body was incidentally discovered in her right bronchus when a radiograph of her chest was taken. The foreign body was removed from the bronchus by means of aspiration. A lower primary central incisor was identified by the morphological features. The surface and the ground sections of this tooth were examined by a binocular microscope and an optical microscope.
The results obtained were as follows:
1. The resorption was taking place on the root surface up to two-thirds of the root length, showing a different pattern from that of the physiological resorption which usually proceeded from the lingual root surface of the lower primary incisor. In this case, the external resorption proceeded evenly in every aspect, leaving a small jut of the inner layer of the dentin.
2. This tooth did not show any caries nor attrition from which the resorption might be derived.
3. A dentinal defect on the inner surface of the root canal was likely, indicating internal resorption.
For the prevention of a mis-deglutition accident, it is recommended that loose teeth be extracted in such patients to reduce the likelihood of aspiration into the lung.
