Perforation of the oesophagus and aorta after eating fish: an unusual cause of chest pain

Migration of a Fish Bone From the Esophagus to the Thyroid Gland

Accidental swallowing of fish bone is one of the most common emergencies in the otolaryngology department. The impacted fish bones are usually found in the palatine tonsil, base of the tongue, valleculae, pyriform sinus, and esophagus, which can be successfully removed after a thorough examination. However, in some cases, the fish bone may penetrate into the neck soft tissue and migrate to extraluminal organs, causing infection, abscess formation, or rupture of vessels. In such cases, prompt recognition and immediate removal of the impacted fish bone are necessary. Herein, we report a rare case of a 60-year-old woman who had accidently swallowed a fish bone 10 days prior to visiting the outpatient department. The fiberoptic scope and head and neck computed tomography scans were obtained from the outpatient department. The fish bone was found to migrate from the upper esophagus to the left thyroid gland. First, a rigid esophageal endoscopy was performed in the operating room, but no obvious fish bone was noted over the esophagus. Finally, the fish bone was removed via exploratory cervicotomy with left-sided total lobectomy of the thyroid. The patient recovered after the operation, and there were no further complications during the 3 years of follow-up.

Fish Bone Descending in the Mediastinum

Ingested sharp foreign bodies rarely migrate extraluminally into adjacent organs such as the pharynx, lungs, and liver. Herein, we report a case of fish bone ingestion where the foreign body followed a unique migration trajectory. Computed tomography revealed a fish bone extraluminally located in the aortopulmonary space in the left mediastinum and peri-esophageal pneumomediastinum. Endoscopic examination indicated no injury to the esophageal mucosa but showed mucosal lacerations in the left hypopharynx. Accordingly, we reasoned that the fish bone penetrated the laryngopharynx and then descended in the mediastinum.

Catastrophic vertebral artery and subclavian artery pseudoaneurysms caused by a fishbone: A case report

BACKGROUND

Fishbone is the most common esophageal foreign body and tends to migrate after piercing the esophagus to nearby structures. Vascular injury around the esophagus is a serious complication and has a high mortality rate, especially in the case of multiple vascular injuries.

CASE SUMMARY

We report an extremely rare case of successive vertebral artery and subclavian artery pseudoaneurysms caused by swallowing a fishbone in a previously healthy 29-year-old female. She was transferred to the emergency department of our hospital because of hemorrhagic shock due to a vertebral artery pseudoaneurysm. We successfully managed the vertebral artery pseudoaneurysm with endovascular stent implantation and the patient’s vital signs as well as hemodynamics once became stable. However, the patient died of the second subclavian artery pseudoaneurysm occurring within a short time, which was thought be related to the obvious displacement of the fishbone in the mediastinum.

CONCLUSION

Surgery and endovascular stent implantation may be the best choice for treating such complications. Early removal of the fishbone is of great significance in improving the survival of such patients.

S

The receptive field for visceral pain referred orofacially by the vagus nerves

BACKGROUND

The nociceptive receptive field of the vagus nerves in animals includes virtually the entire thoracic, abdominal and laryngopharyngeal regions. However, the role of the vagus nerves in the transmission of visceral pain in humans, with the exception of pain from coronary artery diseases, is believed to be insignificant.

AIM

The purpose of this report is to map out the clinical visceral pain receptive field of the vagus nerves relative to its nociceptive counterpart in animals.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The PubMed database and PMC were searched for case reports of patients with orofacial pain believed by the author(s) of the article to be referred from underlying non-cardiac thoracic, laryngopharyngeal or abdominal diseases. Reports of diseases for which non-neural explanations for the orofacial spread of pain were suggested were excluded.

RESULTS

A total of 52 case reports of jaw pain and/or otalgia referred from laryngopharyngeal and noncardiac thoracic sources were discovered. In addition, a multicenter prospective study found that 25.8% of more than 3,000 patients with thoracic aortic dissection experienced pain in the head and neck region. In stark contrast, no case reports of orofacially referred pain from abdominal diseases were found.

DISCUSSION

The results indicate that the laryngopharyngeal and thoracic portions of the vagal receptive field are capable of referring pain orofacially while the abdominal portion is not. The roles of the somatotopic organization of the trigeminal sub nucleus caudalis and neuromodulation in this referral of pain were discussed.

CONCLUSION

Referred orofacial pain can lead to delayed diagnosis and poorer outcome in visceral diseases.

A foreign body in the mediastinum as a cause of chronic cough in a 10-year-old child with asthma

Introduction: Chronic cough is a common problem faced by pediatricians, with a reported prevalence of 20% among preschoolers. It is also the most frequent symptom of asthma. Many causes of chronic cough may also be possible causes of asthma exacerbations.Case study: We describe a 10-year-old boy with asthma, which was admitted to the hospital with a persistent dry cough for five months. Initially, he was treated as an exacerbation of asthma; however, a subsequent chest X-ray identified a wire during the next hospitalization. Although the wire was not found during bronchoscopy, a CT scan located the wire in the mediastinum.Results: The patient required urgent thoracic surgery, ending with the extraction of a 3 cm-long metallic wire. The history revealed that he had choked on a pizza shortly before the onset of coughing: it is most likely that the foreign body had been aspirated, and that it may have originated from a metal brush used to clean the oven. However, it is difficult to determine whether the wire was originally aspirated into the airways or into the gastrointestinal tract; from the latter, it would have perforated either the bronchus or esophagus and migrated to the mediastinum.Conclusion: The symptoms associated with aspiration or ingestion of a foreign body in the upper aerodigestive tract can simulate other pediatric diseases, such as asthma, and delay the correct diagnosis. Our findings demonstrate that chronic cough in children with asthma is not always a result of exacerbation. Precise interviewing and correct interpretation of basic diagnostic testing may be key for setting an accurate diagnosis.

Sewing needle migrating from esophagus into prevertebral space: A challenging case

Oesophageal foreign body presents as a medical emergency and requires immediate evaluation and treatment. We are reporting a rare case of sewing needle in esophagus migrating into the prevertebral space at thoracic inlet level. A 13-year-old mentally retarded female child was brought in emergency at midnight with complaint of accidental ingestion of sewing needle with the thread. Patient was posted for rigid esophagoscopy under general anaesthesia, no needle could be visualised and only thread of the sewing needle was removed. So patient was taken up for neck exploration along with gastroenterologists. Further careful dissection confirmed the needle in the pre vertebral space, which was removed successfully with artery forceps. Patient was given IV antibiotics for 10 days. Patient had an uneventful recovery and was discharged after 10 days. Pointed metallic slender foreign bodies can perforate and migrate very fast in the neck or chest and can lead to morbidity and mortality. Multidisciplinary approach offers a great advantage in surgical planning and proper patient management.

Aortic Pseudoaneurysm Secondary to Mediastinitis due to Esophageal Perforation

Esophageal perforation is a condition associated with high morbidity and mortality rates; it requires early diagnosis and treatment. The most common complication of esophageal rupture is mediastinitis. There are several case reports in the literature of mediastinitis secondary to esophageal perforation and development of aortic pseudoaneurysm as a complication. We report the case of a patient with an 8-day history of esophageal perforation due to foreign body (fishbone) with mediastinitis and aortic pseudoaneurysm. The diagnosis was made using Computed Tomography (CT) with intravenous and oral water-soluble contrast material. An esophagogastroduodenoscopy did not detect the perforation.

Vertebral artery dissection due to an esophageal foreign body migration: a case report

Unintentional foreign bodies‘ swallowing is a fairly common occurrence in ENT consultation especially among children. They usually pass through the gastrointestinal tract without complications. Migration of a foreign body through the esophageal wall is rare. It represents about 1% to 4% of all cases of foreign bodies‘ ingestion. A 16 year's old female patient has presented to ENT emergency with a painful dysphagia following an accidental ingestion of a metallic pin. Cervical X ray confirmed the presence of the pin while endoscopic investigations have shown no foreign body. Cervical CT scan revealed the migration of the foreign body through the esophageal wall with left vertebral artery dissection. Endoscopic management has been sufficient with an uneventful post operative follow up. Esophageal foreign bodies are very diverse mainly dominated by fish bones (60%) and chicken bones (16%). Metallic pins are rare. The major risks of migration of those foreign bodies are cervical abscess, mediastinitis and oeso-vascular fistulae. Cases of self extrusion through the skin have been reported. Migration of a foreign body through the esophageal wall is rare. Endoscopic management has been sufficient.

Value of helical computed tomography in the early diagnosis of esophageal foreign bodies in adults

PURPOSE

To investigate the relationship between early use of computed tomography (CT) and complications associated with esophageal foreign body impaction in adults.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

A retrospective study was performed on 120 patients (63 females, 57 males, median age 50 years) with a history of foreign bodies. All had negative findings on clinical examination. All cases underwent unenhanced helical CT, and patients with positive findings underwent esophagoscopy within 6 hours. All patients were followed up postoperatively.

RESULTS

CT demonstrated 100% sensitivity, 92.6% specificity, 100% negative predictive value, and 97.9% positive predictive value. Esophageal foreign bodies were associated with a high incidence of complications in adults, and there was a significant difference in the incidence of complications between different durations of impaction (P < .01). In total, 37 patients presented with complications: 32 patients with grade I, 3 with grade II, 2 with grade III, and 0 with grade IV.

CONCLUSIONS

Esophageal foreign bodies were associated with a high incidence of complications in adults. CT could detect foreign bodies accurately in the early stages, and then FBs could be removed as early as possible, which may reduce the incidence of complications. Moreover, the great majority of complications were of lower grades. Thus, CT may be a useful first-line radiological tool for the early diagnosis of esophageal foreign bodies in adults.

Esophageal large fish bone (sea bream jawbone) impaction successfully managed with endoscopy and safely excreted through the intestinal tract

A 68-year-old man consulted our hospital because of back pain. A chest computed tomography (CT) demonstrated a high-density foreign body in the esophageal wall. There was no evidence of pneumomediastinum. Endoscopic examination demonstrated a large fish bone that was stuck in the esophageal wall. It was dislodged and moved into the stomach. The bone was excreted through the intestinal tract on the seventh hospital day. Unintentional ingestion of large fish bones must be considered potentially dangerous. Complications such as esophageal perforation or mediastinitis should be confirmed by CT; and then, the esophageal foreign body should be removed as soon as possible.

Percutaneous removal of a metallic foreign body from the wall of the thoracic aorta

This report details the percutaneous removal of a metallic foreign body from the wall of the thoracic aorta. The foreign body was presumably swallowed and migrated from the esophagus into the aortic lumen progressively during a period of 10 months. The patient had no adverse consequences from the procedure immediately or in the subsequent 18 months of follow-up.

Successful management of an aortoesophageal fistula caused by a fish bone--case report and review of literature

We report a case of aortoesophageal fistula (AEF) caused by a fish bone that had a successful outcome. Aortoesophageal fistula is a rare complication of foreign body ingestion from which few patients survive. Over one hundred cases of AEF secondary to foreign body ingestion have been documented but only seven, including our case, have survived over 12 months. Treatment involved stabilising the patient with a Sengstaken-Blakemore tube and insertion of a thoracic aortic endovascular stent-graft. Unfortunately the stent became infected and definitive open surgical repair involved removing the stent, replacing the aorta with a homograft and coverage with a left trapezius flap while under deep hypothermic arrest.

Aortoesophageal Fistula: A Case Report

Patients with impacted foreign bodies in the upper aerodigestive tract present commonly to ENT clinics. This case report highlights two important issues in the management of these patients. First, if the evidence of esophageal perforation is strong and contrast swallow is negative, the physician must consider further imaging, such as contrast computed tomography. Second, ENT physicians must beware of the complications of esophageal trauma, including major vascular injury and aortoesophageal fistula, in patients with retained sharp foreign bodies in the mid-esophagus.

Rupture of ascending aorta secondary to esophageal perforation by fish bone

Perforations of both esophagus and aorta after swallowing foreign bodies have been described, with aorto-esophageal fistulas at the level of the descending aorta or aortic arch. We present the case of a 48-year-old man with esophageal perforation by fish bone, mediastinitis, and evidence of perforation of the ascending aorta during surgical drainage of the mediastinum. At autopsy, a fish bone was found under the aortic arch. Serial histological macrosections of the mediastinic block allowed reconstruction of the type of injury suffered and a thorough analysis of mediastinic structures, with preservation of topographic relationships. Direct demonstration of the perforation of the posterior wall of ascending aorta was provided. Histological examination ascribed aortic perforation to migration of the fish bone and direct injury. This is the first anatomical and pathological study of an autopsy case of perforation of the ascending aorta by fish bone.

[Upper digestive hemorrhage due to aortoesophageal fistula]

We describe the case of a 60-year-old woman who presented with thoracic pain followed by hematemesis. Aortoesophageal fistula was diagnosed. Double aortic and esophageal protheses were placed with good clinical outcome. After 15 days, the patient presented migration of the esophageal prothesis and a further endoscopic examination was performed. A fishbone was visualized in the fistula orifice.