Accidental ingestion of a denture in a Nigerian man: A case report

Abstract

The tooth contributes to the esthetic appearance of the face. As a result of tooth loss from caries and periodontaldiseases, there is an increase in the number of people wearing dentures, and thus a proportionate increase in the incidence of foreign body in the esophagus.  We report the case of a 49-year-old man who presented to the Endoscopy suite at our institution with a 6-week history of  severe retrosternal pain, dysphagia, and odynophagia after inadvertently swallowing his old denture. At gastroscopy, the denture was  seen to be impacted in the esophagus at about 25cm from the incisor. When managing patients with chest pain, dysphagia, and  odynophagia, a high index of suspicion for foreign body ingestion is needed, even with prolonged symptoms. Obtaining a history of use  of dentures, and duration, is important, and a thorough examination of the oral cavity and dentition is essential.