A change in clinical practice for aural foreign bodies - what we learnt from the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic

Abstract

Objective This case series, conducted during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, investigates the impact of leaving aural foreign bodies in situ for a prolonged period of time, including the risk of complications and success rates of subsequent removal attempts. Method A retrospective study of aural foreign body referrals over a six-month period was carried out. Results Thirty-four patients with 35 foreign bodies were identified (6 organic and 29 inorganic). The duration of foreign bodies left in situ ranged from 1 to 78 days. Four patients suffered from traumatic removal upon initial attempts. First attempts made by non-ENT specialists (68.8 per cent) all failed and were associated with a high risk of trauma (36.4 per cent). Conclusion Because of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, this is the first case series to specifically investigate the relationship between the duration of aural foreign bodies left in situ and the risk of complications. Our data suggest that prolonged duration does not increase the incidence of complications.