Delayed Endoscopic Management of Esophageal Sharp-Pointed Food Impaction: An Analysis of 829 Cases in China.

Background: Esophageal foreign body impaction is the most common cause of endoscopic emergency. However, there are limited available data on delayed endoscopic management of esophageal sharp-pointed food impaction.

Aims: To investigate cases of esophageal sharp-pointed food impaction with endoscopic removal findings.

Methods: This single-center retrospective study collected medical records to identify patients with esophageal sharp-pointed food impaction who underwent endoscopic removal between April 2018 and April 2020. The patients were divided into the early (endoscopic removal <12 h) and delayed intervention (>12 h) cohorts.

Results: Overall, 133 and 696 patients received early and delayed intervention, respectively. The success rate of endoscopic foreign body removal was 96.45%. The most common foreign body was fish bone (66.90%), and the most common shape was "I" (56.26%). Patients from the delayed intervention cohort received general anesthesia with a higher risk for perforation, and no foreign body was identified. The duration of endoscopy, distance between the foreign body/wound and the incisor, and longest diameter of the foreign body were not different between the groups. In multivariate analysis, male sex (odds ratio = 1.792 [1.159, 2.771]; P = 0.009), longer duration of impaction (odds ratio = 2.212 [1.121, 4.365]; P = 0.022) and endoscopy (odds ratio = 1.502 [1.253, 1.800]; P < 0.001), and longest diameter of the foreign body (odds ratio = 1.632 [1.329, 2.003]; P < 0.001) were associated with a higher incidence of perforation in patients with foreign body impaction.

Conclusions: Endoscopic removal is a safe and effective treatment method for sharp-pointed food impaction. Delayed endoscopic removal can increase the risk of esophageal perforation.