A Difficult Case of Foreign Body Removal

31-12-2025

A middle-aged male presented with a history of accidental ingestion of a removable partial denture (RPD). An initial attempt at endoscopic removal was made at Ladakh; however, the procedure was unsuccessful.

The patient presented to our center after 48 hours with complaints of cervical pain and excessive salivation. Upper gastrointestinal endoscopy revealed multiple linear lacerations in the proximal and mid-oesophagus, suggestive of mucosal injury sustained during the migration of the foreign body. The RPD was found to have passed into the stomach.

Several endoscopic attempts were made to retrieve the RPD using a snare, Roth basket, and foreign-body forceps. These attempts were unsuccessful due to the sharp edges and irregular shape of the denture, which posed a high risk of further mucosal injury. Argon Plasma Coagulation (APC) was attempted to cut the RPD; however, this approach failed to fragment the material.

Finally, laser therapy was employed to successfully break the RPD into smaller fragments, which were then removed endoscopically in a piecemeal manner without complications.

The patient was kept under observation and managed conservatively post-procedure. He showed good clinical recovery and was discharged after 48 hours in stable condition.