Nasal foreign bodies

Date First Published:

October 15, 2002

Last Updated:

October 15, 2002

Report by:

Jon Argall, Senior Clinical Fellow (Manchester Royal Infirmary)

Three-Part Question:

In [children with nasal foreign bodies] which [method of removal] is [best]?

Clinical Scenario:

A four year old girl presents to the emergency department having pushed a bead up her right nostril. The foreign body is easily visible in the nasopharynx. You wonder which method of removal is most likely to meet with success.

Search Strategy:

Medline 1966-09/02 using the OVID interface.

Search Details:

[exp Foreign bodies OR foreign body.mp] AND [exp Nose OR nose.mp] AND [(removal.mp OR retrieval.mp)]

Outcome:

81 papers were found, none of which directly answered the question. There are several review articles discussing the different techniques but no comparisons are drawn.

Author Commentary:

There is no evidence for choosing any particular method over another and many different techniques are applicable.

Bottom Line:

No work has been done on comparing the different techniques to determine success. It is therefore advised that cases are treated individually.