Esophageal foreign bodies (FBs) are common in children and can lead to serious complications if undetected. Fluoroscopic esophagram has been standard for radiolucent FBs but involves giving oral contrast and possible poor patient tolerance. Low-dose chest CT offers further advantages of a faster workflow and possibility of remote interpretation. We hypothesized that low-dose CT is sensitive and specific for radiolucent esophageal FBs in children. We correlated these results with the gold standard, esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) when available and clinical resolution when no EGD was performed. Read More

Meeting name: SPR 2026 Annual Meeting , 2026

Authors: Ali Sumera, Dennison Chelsea B, Huang Hui, Jergel Andrew, Alazraki Adina L, Parikh Ashishkumar Kanaiyalal

Keywords: Esophageal Foreign Body, Low-Dose, CT

Foreign body (FB) aspiration is a common medical emergency in children, which can be fatal. Prompt diagnosis is crucial to avoid complication. Bronchoscopy represents the gold standard for diagnosis; however, false negatives can lead to unnecessary invasive testing and exposes children to procedural risks. While lateral decubitus radiographs can assess for air trapping, this exam has low sensitivity for detecting airway foreign bodies. Thus, there is a need for a sensitive and specific diagnostic imaging test in the detection of airway FB. We developed and implemented a FB chest CT protocol that is characterized by low-dose relative to a standard chest CT and no intravenous contrast. We hypothesize that low-dose chest CT is a sensitive and specific modality for detection of airway FB in the pediatric population that may ultimately decrease the negative bronchoscopy rate. Read More

Meeting name: SPR 2026 Annual Meeting , 2026

Authors: Dennison Chelsea B, Onnis Carlotta, Ali Sumera, Huang Hui, Jergel Andrew, Alazraki Adina, Parikh Ashishkumar

Keywords: Chest Computed Tomography (CT), Foreign Body Ingestion, Low Dose Protocol