An unusual foreign body aspiration requiring an unusual retrieval technique

Foreign body aspiration during medical procedures has been reported in the literature. These iatrogenic incidents could be related to instruments malfunction or to accidental occurrences during medical treatment. In this paper, we present a report of a woman coming for a laparoscopic abdominal hysterectomy who developed intraoperative bronchospasm. In an attempt to administer aerosolized albuterol, the resident anesthesia provider fractured the Luer-lock tip of the 60-cc syringe, which he was using to hold the albuterol nebulizer. The plastic tip was dislodged into the endotracheal tube (ETT). On further inspection with a fiberoptic instrument the plastic tip was located loosely adherent to the distal part of the ETT and was held in place by the moisture, which had precipitated in the distal tube. An intraoperative consult with interventional pulmonary medicine was obtained after unsuccessfully attempting to retrieve the foreign body with a grasper. The syringe tip was then removed using a Fogarty balloon catheter that was threaded through the hole of the plastic tip.