Characteristics and outcomes of emergency department patients with a foreign body that entered through the ear, nose or mouth: a 10-year retrospective analysis

Abstract

Background Foreign bodies in the ear, nose and throat commonly necessitate emergency department visits. Method This retrospective study was conducted on emergency department visits from January 2010 to December 2019 to determine characteristics and clinical prognoses of ENT patients. Patients were divided into three groups according to foreign-body entry route; patient characteristics and clinical findings were compared between groups. Results Of 676 142 emergency department visits, 10 454 were because of ENT-related foreign bodies. The mean (± standard deviation) age of subjects was 24.0 (± 23.4) years, and 5176 patients were male (49.5 per cent). The most common entry route was the mouth (74.5 per cent). Most patients (97.1 per cent) were discharged after emergency treatment. Intensive care and in-hospital mortality occurred only in the mouth group. Conclusion Clinical findings differ depending on foreign-body entry route. After emergency treatment, most patients were discharged; some cases presented serious complications.