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Summary
A 71-year-old woman presented to the emergency department 8 days after ingesting fish with mild neck pain but otherwise demonstrated no signs of infection. X-rays were negative but CT imaging demonstrated a curvilinear radiodense object extending from the posterior cervical oesophagus through the right thyroid lobe terminating in the neck just a few millimetres from the external carotid artery. Rigid oesophagoscopy and direct laryngoscopy were negative and the neck was explored for the foreign body, which ultimately was encountered after a painstaking dissection of the right neck that included skeletonisation of the recurrent laryngeal nerve. Her postoperative recovery was uneventful and after a 3-day course of intravenous antibiotics she was discharged on oral antibiotics, in good condition and tolerating a soft diet.
- ear, nose and throat/otolaryngology
- oesophagus
- head and neck surgery
- otolaryngology / ent
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Footnotes
Contributors AS, KH and AM each made substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work, or the acquisition, analysis or interpretation of data; were responsible for drafting the work or revising it critically for important intellectual content; provided final approval of the version published; agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work; agree to ensure that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.
Competing interests None declared.
Patient consent Obtained.
Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.