INGESTED FOREIGN-BODIES - A CONTEMPORARY MANAGEMENT APPROACH

A prospective study of all foreign body complaints presenting through our Accident and Emergency Department was conducted in a population wh ere the condition is endemic. All patients were managed by otolaryngol ogists. Six hundred and eight patients were attended to yielding 179 f oreign bodies. Making use of modern equipment and a practical approach , the requirement for examination under general anaesthesia was 6.3 pe r cent. In this series there was a complication rate of 0.5 per cent.