Foreign bodies of the aerodigestive tract have been recognized for centurles. Before the early 20th century, foreign body aspiration or ingestion often meant prolonged illness and death.1 Prior to the advent of modern endoscopy, bronchotomy was the primary method of laryngotracheo-bronchial foreign body removal, and blunt metallic hooks, wire nooses, esophageal forceps, and pieces of linen attached to a piece of whalebone were used to extract foreign bodies from the esophagus.2