BACKGROUND Tracheobronchial foreign body (FB) aspiration (FBA) is a life-threatening emergency mostly observed in childhood and advanced age. With early diagnosis, the FB can be removed using bronchoscopic methods without causing irreversible damage. METHODS This was a single-center, retrospective observational study. Subjects diagnosed with FBA via either bronchoscopic methods and/or radiological findings, having no medical history of aspirated FB, and who were detected to have aspirated FB for longer than 30 days were included in the study. Medical records and radiological and bronchoscopic findings of the subjects were investigated from the hospital information database system. RESULTS Of the 255 patients with FBA, 17.6% (N = 45) were diagnosed late. The mean age was 53 y; 28% were female, and 60% of the subjects had a history of ever smoking. The estimated residence time of the FB in the bronchial system was 22.8 months. The most common complaints were cough and shortness of breath. Forty-two percent of the aspirated FBs were organic material. FB artifact could be observed in 6.7% of posteroanterior chest radiographs and 65% of thorax computed tomography (CT) scans. Rigid bronchoscopy had been primarily preferred as therapeutic interventional procedure. It was also found that the artifact most frequently resided in the right bronchial system and was most commonly found in the right lower lobe, while granulation tissue was formed in 85% of the subjects. CONCLUSIONS The findings of the present study demonstrate that subjects tended to forget the FBA, leading to insidious respiratory system symptoms, with recurrent infections. In cases with an endobronchial mass lesion image on thorax CT, clinicians should consider the possibility of FBA. Delayed diagnosis of both organic and inorganic FB may cause granulation tissue.

中文翻译：

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成人异物吸入的晚期诊断：病例系列和文献回顾。

背景气管支气管异物（FB）误吸（FBA）是一种危及生命的紧急情况，主要发生在儿童和老年。通过早期诊断，可以使用支气管镜方法去除FB，而不会造成不可逆的损伤。方法 这是一项单中心、回顾性观察研究。通过支气管镜检查方法和/或放射学检查结果诊断为 FBA、无误吸 FB 病史、以及被检测出误吸 FB 时间超过 30 天的受试者均纳入本研究。从医院信息数据库系统中调查受试者的医疗记录以及放射学和支气管镜检查结果。结果 255 例 FBA 患者中，17.6%（N = 45）确诊为晚期。平均年龄为 53 岁；28% 是女性，60% 的受试者有吸烟史。FB 在支气管系统中的估计停留时间为 22.8 个月。最常见的症状是咳嗽和呼吸急促。42% 的吸入 FB 是有机材料。FB 伪影可在 6.7% 的后前位胸片和 65% 的胸部计算机断层扫描 (CT) 扫描中观察到。硬性支气管镜检查一直是首选的治疗性介入手术。研究还发现，伪影最常见于右支气管系统，最常见于右下叶，而 85% 的受试者形成肉芽组织。结论 本研究的结果表明，受试者往往会忘记 FBA，从而导致隐匿的呼吸系统症状和反复感染。如果胸部 CT 出现支气管内肿块病变影像，临床医生应考虑 FBA 的可能性。有机和无机 FB 的延迟诊断可能会导致肉芽组织。