ASPIRATED SAFETY PIN REQUIRING THORACOTOMY - REPORT OF A CASE AND REVIEW

Foreign body aspirations in children are relatively uncommon occurrenc es, but they can be a serious events, causing respiratory distress, at electasis, chronic pulmonary infections, or death. Safety pins are not commonly aspirated objects and account for less than 3% of all foreig n bodies found in the tracheobronchial tree. Fewer than 2% of patients require thoracotomy, and most aspirated materials can be removed by b ronchoscopy, with low morbidity and mortality. A discussion of airway foreign bodies follows the presentation of a case of an older child wh o aspirated a safety pin, which required open thoracostomy for removal .