Inhalation of a Foreign Body when Using a Dosed Aerosol
- Meridj A1, Belala R2, Tlili K3, Djeghri Y4
- 1,2,3,4 Pulmonology Service, Constantine Regional Military University Hospital, Algeria
Asthmatics often use inhalation devices and many precautions are often neglected such as closing the nozzle after use.
We report the observation of a 54-year-old patient who, after inhaling a bronchodilator to calm an asthma attack, inhaled a sharp metal pin inserted into the nozzle of the inhalation device. For eight years the patient presented episodes of recurrent pulmonary diseases treated with antibiotic therapy and the presence of a strangolingendobronchial body was never mentioned. Until it develops an abscess of the lung, bronchial fibroscopy has aloror objective the foreign body whose extraction necessitated a thoracotomy.
This case illustrates the need to always re-cap the nozzle of the inhalation device after use. A simple gesture that will avoid this type of incident with sometimes dramatic complications requiring surgery in our patient’s case.