Ultrasound-guided removal of hypopharyngeal foreign body in the emergency department.

Foreign body impaction at the cricopharyngeal level can be a life-threatening emergency. While traditionally, removal of these is performed in the operating room setting, patients with relatively unstable airways or significant discomfort may require immediate extraction to prevent further injury. This is the case of an 85-year-old man who presented to the emergency department in significant discomfort following aspiration of a large partial denture. We report here the first known use of ultrasound in an emergent airway situation to rapidly localize and retrieve an aspirated foreign body.