Bending of an Aspirated Pin During Rigid Bronchoscopy: Safeguards and Pitfalls

Pin aspiration is a common problem in Muslim countries, where many women wear veils (hijab). This condition is usually treated using either a rigid or a flexible bronchoscope, and yet occasionally requires surgical approach. Pin bending may be necessary to extract impacted pins during the therapeutic rigid bronchoscopy.

Medical records of patients who had pins extracted with a bending technique during the period from January 2012 to December 2016 in 1 institution were analyzed. Information on intraoperative and postoperative complications was collected.

Between 2012 and 2016, 315 rigid bronchoscopies were performed for pin extraction; in 38 cases, bending of the pin was required for the extraction because they were in a position that did not allow simple extraction. The procedure was successful in cases and there were no major complications.

The extraction of visible, distally located or impacted pins can be safely performed by experienced bronchoscopists using the bending technique. Some safeguards and pitfalls must be noted to ensure maximum safety.