Virtual Bronchoscopy: Highly Sensitive Time and Life Saving Investigation in the Diagnosis of Foreign Body Aspiration—Our Experience

Foreign body airway is a common cause of morbidity and mortality in children. Virtual bronchoscopy is a new investigative technique useful in locating non radiopaque FB missed on plain radiography. The aim of the study was to study the clinical profile of patients with suspected foreign body aspiration and to evaluate the changing trends in the diagnosis and quicker management of foreign body aspiration as a way of virtual bronchoscopy. This was a retrospective and prospective cross sectional study conducted in the Department of Otorhinolaryngology M.G.M.M.C. and M.Y. Hospital Indore for a period of 10 years. The medical records of patients with foreign body aspiration, from August 2006 to September 2016 were reviewed. Data was collected regarding their clinical presentation, examination and chest X-ray, virtual bronchoscopy, rigid bronchoscopy findings. Patients with suspected foreign body aspiration were subjected to virtual bronchoscopy and rigid bronchoscopy was performed. The techniques and methods to extract different types of foreign bodies has been elaborated in this study. In the 150 subjects, we observed mean age group of presentation was 2.1 years, male is to female ratio was 4.1, 70% of the cases came from the rural areas, 86% were vegetative foreign bodies, and remaining non vegetative were aspirated mostly during the winter season. Betel nut was the most common aspirated foreign body 0.63% had a positive history of foreign body aspiration, where as 37% had a negative history. Right main bronchus was the most common site of lodgement. Breathlessness and reduced air entry were the most common symptoms and signs. We also observed, that chest radiograph were normal in as many as 40% cases. Hence negative chest radiographs does not rule out FB. In 150 patients with foreign body aspiration, which was detected by virtual bronchoscopy, 148 patients were diagnosed to have foreign body on rigid bronchoscopy. This amounts to a positive predictive value of 97.3% which was similar to the positive predictive value of rigid bronchoscopy which was 99%. Virtual bronchoscopy is the only imaging modality which gives 99.9% reassurance about the presence or absence of a foreign body, because of its high sensitivity and specificity, hence proves to be a life saving tool.