Symptoms
Categories:
FOREIGN BODIES IN THE ESOPHAGUS
Sources:
A Manual Of Peroral Endoscopy And Laryngeal Surgery
Dysphagia is the most frequent complaint in cases of
esophageally lodged foreign bodies. A very small object may excite
sufficient spasm to cause aphagia, while a relatively large foreign
body may be tolerated, after a time, so that the swallowing function
may seem normal. Intermittent dysphagia suggests the tilting or
shifting of a foreign body in a valve-like fashion; but may be due to
occlusion of the by-passages by food arrested by the foreign body.
Dyspnea may be present if the foreign body is large enough to
compress the trachea. Cough may be excited by reflex irritation,
overflow of secretions into the larynx, or by perforation of the
posterior tracheal wall, traumatic or ulcerative, allowing leakage of
food or secretion into the trachea. (See Chapter XII for discussion of
symptomatology and diagnosis.)