Clinical study of esophageal foreign bodies attributable to PTP material

Inadvertent Ingestion of a Press-Through Package Causing Perforation of the Small Intestine within an Incisional Hernia and Panperitonitis

“…Since small square pieces of PTPs with sharp edges may break off, they tend to be caught and to pose a potential risk of bowel perforation when inadvertently swallowed. In addition to lodging in the esophagus, mistakenly swallowed PTPs have caused distal intestinal and colonic perforation or obstruction [2, 3]. Although previous reports have noted that 80-90% of swallowed foreign bodies are spontaneously passed and that less than 1% cause perforation [4], PTPs might be associated with a greater risk of perforation.…”

“…When the foreign body is radiopaque, diagnosis is relatively straightforward. However, PTP material is difficult to detect because it is radiolucent [2]. Hence, in most of the reported cases, the correct diagnosis was not made until operation or endoscopic examination [1, 3, 6, 7, 8].…”

Press through package mis-swallowing

“…All of our cases were diagnosed with early correct interpretation of these special radiographic findings. The first and second narrowed portions of the oesophagus were the usual site of lodging and account for 78% of the patients with oesophageal PTP foreign bodies (2). Lateral radiography of the neck is of value for PTP oesophageal impaction.…”

“…In conclusion, although relatively rare, the PTP is being seen increasingly in cases of foreign body in the digestive tract (1,2). Early diagnosis can be established by early recognition of air trapped within the package on the radiography.…”

“…The diagnoses of radiopague foreign body ingestion dose not pose a major problem. However, the PTP material is difficult to detect due to radiolucency (2). The correct diagnosis is usually not made until operation or endoscopic examination in most literature (1,4,(7)(8)(9).…”