Abstract
Background: Foreign body inhalation is a common problem in children. In our setup beads are available in the form of cheap jewelry and prayer beads. With improvement in endoscopic technology for extraction of foreign body from the airways, mortality has reduced. This study was carried out to determine the efficacy of rigid bronchoscopy for extraction of beads from airways in a tertiary care hospital. Material & Methods: This cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted at Department of ENT, Head & Neck Surgery, Lady Reading Hospital, Peshawar, from January 2012 to December 2013. Any patient of any age and either sex with inhaled bead was evaluated in terms of detailed history, thorough examination and relevant investigation. After taking consent bead was retrieved with rigid bronchoscopy and patient was put on injectable antibiotics and steroid. All these patients were followed up to one month. The data was collected on a proforma and statistical analysis was performed using SPSS version 17. Results: This study included 23 cases constituting 16 male and 7 female, with male to female ratio of 2.2:1. Mean age was 5.47+4.38 years (range 1-18 years). Majority of patients 15(56.21%) belonged to lower socioeconomic group. Most of the patients (69.56%) presented within three days. The commonest site for lodgment of bead was the right main bronchus 56.52%. Cough was the commonest presentation (52.17%) followed by wheezy chest 43.47% and in 15(65.21%) cases bead was visible on chest x-ray. Conclusion: Rigid bronchoscopy is an effective procedure for extraction of beads from tracheobroncheal tree.