Can inhaled foreign body mimic asthma in an adolescent?

Abstract

A 14 year old male was diagnosed with asthma but didn´t improve with appropriate inhalation therapy. Rigid bronchoscopy revealed a food fragment, almost completely occluding the lower-left bronchus lumen. Based on the reported history, it had been likely there for several years.

Keywords

• foreign body aspiration
• asthma
• differential diagnosis
• bronchoscopy
• cough
• adolescent