For Unknown Reasons, Accidentally Inhaled Pins Have Tendency for Left Sided Bronchial Lodgment

Abstract

background: the higher incidence of right sided bronchial impaction as compared to left sided one is a very old medical fact regarding inhaled foreign bodies, in recently published literatures, and in our expanding experience, we were hardly accept that there might be something different, it looks like that this fact is a (type of foreign body) dependent type.objectives: The ensuing problem in the last decade of inhaled pins had it's certain clinical characteristics, one of them, which is discussed at our literature, is the strange tendency of the pins to be lodged in the left sided bronchi, contrary to the well known tendency of the inhaled foreign bodies to be lodged in the right sided bronchi due to well-known tracheobronchial anatomical factors.Methods: A retrospective study of 24 patients positive with pin inhalation presented during the period from 15/9/2009 to 4/7/2014 at Hilla General Teaching Hospital, site of lodgment was analyzed to be either tracheal, right or left bronchial. Site of lodgment was decided depending on CXR, bronchoscopic and sometimes operative findings.Results: Total number of patients was 24, In 15(62.50%) of them the pins were settled at left bronchi, In 5(20.83%) patients, the pins were at trachea, and 4(16.66%) patients were with right bronchial pins.Conclusion: Metallic pins have strange tendency for left sided bronchial impaction