Keywords: foreign body, cricopharyngeus, endoschopy

Abstract: A retrospective review of 1920 patients who probably had ingested foreign bodies (FB), was undertaken. The majority of the FB was found at the cricopharyngeus. The FB were removed by rigid esophagoscopy, direct laryngoscopy or balloon extraction. Rigid esophagoscopy was successful in 80,1%, balloon extraction in 99,1% and direct laryngoscopy in 95,2%. In 16,8% of the patients the instrumentation did not identify any FB. Topical anesthesia was used in 72,9% of patients, local in 3,3% and general in 23,8%. The extraction of the FB was not associated with morbidity or mortality.