Laryngo-Tracheo-Bronchial Foreign Bodies: Assessment of 10 Years of Activity at the Luxembourg Mother-Child University Hospital

Abstract

Aim: Study the epidemiological, clinical and therapeutic aspects of laryngo-tracheo-bronchial foreign bodies. Materials and method: This was a retrospective cross-sectional study which focused on 41 cases of laryngo-tracheo-bronchial foreign bodies collected at the Mother-Child University Hospital Center “Le Luxembourg”, from March 31, 2013 to March 31, 2023. Results: Forty-one cases of laryngo-tracheobronchial foreign bodies were collected. The male gender represented 65.9%. Children under 2 years old accounted for 56.1%. The reasons for consultation were dyspnea in 73.2% and cough in 26.8%. The consultation time was 51.2% in the first 48 hours with extremes of 6 hours to 11 months. The history revealed a penetration syndrome in 78% of cases. The complementary examination of first resort was the front and lateral chest radiography. He did not visualize a foreign body in 75.6% of cases. Endoscopy was performed in all cases except for one case who died during transfer to the emergency room. The location was the right main bronchus in 63.4% of cases. The foreign bodies were organic in nature in 70.7% and 21 cases of peanut seed was found (51.21%). The postoperative course was simple in all cases under antibiotic-corticotherapy treatment. Conclusion: Laryngo-tracheo-bronchial foreign bodies predominate in young children. The most suggestive sign is penetration syndrome. The extraction must take place in the best conditions with a team experienced in this exercise.