The role of 3D computed tomography (CT) imaging in the diagnosis of foreign body aspiration in children.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this studywastoimprovetheunderstandingofFBA inchildrenandtodecreasetherateofmisdiag - nosis,misseddiagnosisandmorbidity. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We analyzed the clinical features and the three-dimensional re - constructedCTimagesof590childrenwithfor- eignbodyaspiration(FBA)intheXuzhouareaof theJiangsuprovince. RESULTS: CTimagingrevealedcommoncom - plications of FBA including emphysema (n = 379), pneumonia (n = 174), and atelectasis (n = 26).The remaining 120 patients had no visible complications on the three-dimensional recon - structed CT images. Serious complications in - cluding pneumothorax, pneumomediastinum, subcutaneous emphysema, pneumatorrhachis could also be observed.The types of foreign bodies were diverse: the most common were peanutsandsunflowerseeds.Thediagnosticac - curacyofthethree-dimensionalCTimagingwas high,withasensitivityandspecificityof99.83% and99.89%,respectively. CONCLUSIONS: 3DCTimagingisanaccurate, non-invasive technique to evaluate children with suspectedFBAthatcanhelpdecreasetherateof misdiagnosis and eliminate a delay in treatment forthispotentiallylife-threateningcondition.