Anesthesia for foreign bodies in the tracheo-bronchial tree in children.

The authors present the anesthetic and ventilation techniques, used in 106 children, who were suspected of foreign body aspiration in the respiratory tract. In 62 children a foreign body was found. The youngest child was 8 months old and the oldest 13 years, with an age distribution peak in the 1 to 2 years age group. A predominance for the male sex (60%) was present. Foreign bodies of organic nature were found most frequently (80%), 39 of them consisting of peanuts. The bronchi were involved more often than the trachea and the foreign body was located more frequently at the right bronchus (38 pt). The children were ventilated initially with an intermittent oxygen jet injection technique, using a home made apparatus, but since 1978 with HFPPV, using the AGA Bronchovent. Induction of anesthesia was done with halothane and maintenance with etomidate infusion (10-20 micrograms/kg/min.) or thiopental increments (2 to 3 mg/kg). The technique so far used, proved to be satisfactory, specially since HFPPV is used. Few complications occurred. One child died during the bronchoscopic procedure and in an other child a tracheostomy had to be performed for extraction of the foreign body.