Analysis of 334 Cases of Pediatric Esophageal Foreign Body Removal Suggests that Traditional Methods Have Similar Outcomes Whereas a Magnetic Tip Orogastric Tube Appears to be an Effective, Efficient, and Safe Technique for Disc Battery Removal

Procedures and outcomes for pediatric esophageal foreign body removal were analyzed. Traditional methods of battery removal were compared with a magnetic tip orogastric tube (MtOGT). A single institution retrospective review from 1997 to 2014 of pediatric patients with esophageal foreign bodies was performed. Balloon extraction with fluoroscopy (performed in 173 patients with 91% success), flexible endoscopy (92% success in 102 patients), and rigid esophagoscopy (95% in 38 patients) had excellent success rates. A MtOGT had 100 per cent success in six disc battery patients, when other methods were more likely to fail, and was the fastest. Power analysis suggested 20 patients in the MtOGT group would be needed for significant savings in procedural time. Thirty-two per cent of all foreign bodies and 95 per cent of batteries had complications (P = 0.002) because of the foreign body. Overall, 1.2 per cent had severe complications, whereas 10 per cent of batteries had severe complications (P = 0.04). Each technique if applied appropriately can be a reasonable option for esophageal foreign body removal. Magnetic tip orogastric tubes used to extract ferromagnetic objects like disc batteries had the shortest procedure time and highest success rate although it was not statistically significant. Disc batteries require emergent removal and have a significant complication rate.