Case Report

Esophageal Foreign Body Aspiration Presenting as Asthma in the Pediatric Patient

Authors: Shireen Mohiuddin, MD, M. Saif-ur-Rehman Siddiqui, MD, James F. Mayhew, MD, FAAP

Abstract

This report describes three cases of foreign body ingestion incorrectly diagnosed as asthma and/or upper respiratory tract infection. These cases demonstrate the need for further clinical investigations in any child who does not improve with adequate therapy. Many of our patients had symptoms of asthma and/or respiratory tract infection for at least 1 month before correct diagnosis.


Respiratory distress secondary to esophageal foreign body ingestion is an unusual occurrence. Wheezing secondary to foreign body ingestion that is diagnosed as asthma may lead to a delayed diagnosis and potentially life-threatening complications. We report three patients who presented to our institution and in whom a foreign body was found in the esophagus. These cases had been diagnosed and treated as asthma for a number of weeks before arrival at our institution. The first case involved a boy who was brought to the emergency department in respiratory distress and in whom a chest radiograph revealed an esophageal foreign body. The second case was a boy seen in our ear, nose, and throat clinic whose chest radiograph revealed a foreign body in the esophagus. The third case we report was a 10-month-old boy who was treated for upper respiratory tract infections and asthma before a chest radiograph revealed a foreign body.

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