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Published on: November 4, 2010

[Severe asthma due to an esophageal foreign body in a child]

D Lavarde1, E Deneuville, M Dagorne

  • 1Département de médecine de l'enfant et de l'adolescent, hôpital Sud, 16, boulevard de Bulgarie, 35000 Rennes, France. dominique.lavarde@lmr.ap-hop-paris.fr

Archives De Pediatrie : Organe Officiel De La Societe Francaise De Pediatrie
|April 4, 2006
PubMed

Insights

A foreign body in the esophagus caused severe asthma and respiratory distress in a child. Removing the esophageal foreign body resolved all pulmonary symptoms, indicating a direct link.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Pulmonology
  • Gastroenterology
  • Thoracic Surgery

Background:

  • Infantile bronchial asthma can be challenging to manage, sometimes presenting with atypical symptoms.
  • Persistent respiratory distress in children warrants a thorough investigation beyond common etiologies.

Observation:

  • A 4-year-old boy presented with treatment-resistant infantile bronchial asthma and febrile respiratory distress.
  • Diagnostic imaging revealed a mediastinal mass compressing the esophagus, with vertebral disc erosion.
  • An esophagogram identified a foreign body within an esophageal diverticulum.

Findings:

  • Surgical extraction of the esophageal foreign body was performed.
  • Post-extraction, the patient experienced complete resolution of all pulmonary symptoms, including asthma and respiratory distress.

Implications:

  • This case highlights the importance of considering esophageal foreign bodies in pediatric respiratory distress, even with apparent asthma.
  • Esophageal abnormalities can manifest with severe, seemingly unrelated pulmonary symptoms.
  • Prompt diagnosis and removal of esophageal foreign bodies can lead to rapid and complete recovery from respiratory compromise.

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