[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":3,"doc-seo-435655-105":59,"doc-detail-435655-en":130},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",[7,13,18,23,28,33,38,43,48,51,55],{"id":8,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":10,"show_sort_weight":11,"slug":12},1,"Document","Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":14,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":15,"show_sort_weight":16,"slug":17},2,"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":19,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":20,"show_sort_weight":21,"slug":22},4,"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":24,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":25,"show_sort_weight":26,"slug":27},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":29,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":30,"show_sort_weight":31,"slug":32},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":34,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":35,"show_sort_weight":36,"slug":37},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":39,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":40,"show_sort_weight":41,"slug":42},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":44,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":45,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":47},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":46,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":49,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":50},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":52,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":53,"show_sort_weight":52,"slug":54},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":56,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":57,"show_sort_weight":24,"slug":58},19,"General","general",{"code":4,"msg":60,"data":61},"ok",{"site_id":62,"language":63,"slug":64,"title":65,"keywords":66,"description":67,"schema_data":68,"social_meta":123,"head_meta":125,"extra_data":127,"updated_unix":129},105,"en","foreign-body-impaction-in-the-pediatric-palate-a-case-report-of-a-frequently-misdiagnosed-condition","Foreign Body Impaction in the Pediatric Palate - A Case Report of a Frequently Misdiagnosed Condition","","Foreign body (FB) impaction in the pediatric palate is frequently mistaken for a palatal fistula or mass, prompting avoidable diagnostic workups such as computed tomography and x-rays. A 13-month-old boy presenting with a newly developed oronasal fistula underwent clinical evaluation that correctly identified a FB impacted in the palatal vault. The button-cap FB was removed under general anesthesia with airway control, with no complications observed and complete superficial mucosal healing on follow-up.",{"@graph":69,"@context":122},[70,84,105],{"@type":71,"itemListElement":72},"BreadcrumbList",[73,77,79,82],{"item":74,"name":75,"@type":76,"position":8},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":78,"name":9,"@type":76,"position":14},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/",{"item":80,"name":35,"@type":76,"position":81},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/healthcare/",3,{"item":83,"name":65,"@type":76,"position":19},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/foreign-body-impaction-in-the-pediatric-palate-a-case-report-of-a-frequently-misdiagnosed-condition/435655/",{"url":83,"name":65,"@type":85,"image":86,"author":91,"headline":65,"publisher":94,"fileFormat":97,"inLanguage":63,"description":67,"dateModified":98,"datePublished":99,"encodingFormat":97,"isAccessibleForFree":100,"interactionStatistic":101},"DigitalDocument",{"url":87,"@type":88,"width":89,"height":90},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/foreign-body-impaction-in-the-pediatric-palate-a-case-report-of-a-frequently-misdiagnosed-condition/435655.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":92,"@type":93},"hdkawk","Person",{"url":74,"name":95,"@type":96},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-30","2026-09-29",true,{"@type":102,"interactionType":103,"userInteractionCount":44},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":104},"ViewAction",{"@type":106,"mainEntity":107},"FAQPage",[108,114,118],{"name":109,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":111},"What is the main clinical problem described in the case report?","Question",{"text":112,"@type":113},"Foreign body impaction in the pediatric palate often masquerades as a palatal fistula or mass, leading to initial misdiagnosis and unnecessary investigations.","Answer",{"name":115,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":116},"How was the foreign body identified and managed in this 13-month-old patient?",{"text":117,"@type":113},"Clinical evaluation identified a foreign body impacted in the hard palate vault, and the aluminum button cap was successfully removed under general anesthesia with adequate airway control.",{"name":119,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":120},"What clues suggest palatal foreign body impaction as a differential diagnosis?",{"text":121,"@type":113},"In children under 4 years old, a sudden-onset palatal mass or fistula without prior palatal pathology and without symptoms such as feeding difficulty, nasal regurgitation, speech problems, or airway symptoms should raise suspicion, especially when an isolated hard palate cleft or fistula spares the velum.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":83,"og:type":124,"og:title":65,"og:site_name":95,"og:description":67},"article",{"robots":126,"canonical":83},"index,follow",{"doc_id":128,"site_id":62},435655,1790764525,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":131},{"doc_id":128,"user_id":132,"nickname":92,"user_avatar":133,"doc_module":4,"category_id":34,"category_name":35,"doc_title":65,"doc_description":67,"doc_content":134,"file_id":135,"file_url":136,"file_type":137,"file_size":138,"view_count":44,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":8,"is_downloadable":8,"audit_status":8,"page_count":81,"language":139,"language_code":63,"site_id":62,"html_lang":63,"table_of_contents":140,"faqs":141,"seo_title":142,"seo_description":67,"update_tm":143,"read_time":39,"preview_page_count":4},3985747859855,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_276721f389ce27ea32af1340a28f341c","Case RepoRt   \nCraniofacial  \nForeign Body Impaction in the Pediatric Palate: A Case Report ofa Frequently Misdiagnosed Condition  \nAhmed M. Hashem, MD*† Yomna E. Dean, MD*‡  \nSummary: This case report aims to increase awareness about foreign body (FB) impaction in the pediatric palate. The significance of this clinical entity lies in the fact that it is frequently misdiagnosed as a palatal fistula or mass. Patients are therefore subjected to a variety of unnecessary investigations, for example, computed tomography scans and x-rays. In this case report, a 13-month-old boy was referred for a newly developed oronasal fistula. Clinical evaluation, however, correctly identified a FB impacted in the palatal vault. The FB (button cap) was successfully removed under general anesthesia with adequate airway control. No complications were observed. The diagnosis of FB impaction in the pediatric palate can be simple: The usual scenario is of a child less than 4 years of age, who is otherwise healthy, presenting with a sudden-onset palatal mass or fistula. Typically history of palatal pathology is lacking, and the patient has no associated feeding difficulty, nasal regurgitation, speech, or airway symptoms. Thus, we believe a palatal FB impaction should be included in the differentials whenever a patient of this age group presents with a sudden-onset palatal fistula or mass without history of the disorder and no associated relevant symptoms. Specifically, an isolated hard palate cleft or fistula that spares the velum in the absence of nasal regurgitation or feeding difficulties is suggestive. (Plast Reconstr Surg Glob Open 2026;14:e7386; doi: 10.1097/GOX.0000000000007386; Published online 5 January 2026.)  \nF  \noreign body (FB) impaction in the pediatric hard palate has not been commonly reported. The first description was published in 1966 by Sitarz.1 The  \nmost recent report was issued in 2024 by Atiyah.2 A systematic review in 2019 found only 32 cases reported during a 52-year period (1967–2019) .3  \nThe major problem with this clinical entity is that the FB masquerades as a palatal fistula or mass and therefore tends to be misdiagnosed initially. In their systematic review, Khalaf et al3 found that a correct diagnosis was established in only 25% of cases (8 out of 32). Other diagnoses initially suspected included neoplastic, infective, congenital, and cystic pathology.  \nFrom the *Department of Plastic Surgery, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH; †Department of Plastic Surgery, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt; and ‡Faculty of Medicine, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt.  \nReceived for publication August 6, 2025; accepted November 10, 2025.  \nCopyright © 2026 The Authors. Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. on behalf of The American Society of Plastic Surgeons. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives License 4.0 (CCBY-NC-ND), where it is permissible to download and share the work provided it is properly cited. The work cannot be changed in any way or used commercially without permission from the journal.  \nDOI: 10. 1097/GOX.0000000000007386  \nWe believe that this is primarily due to a lack of awareness among clinicians of this clinical presentation. Thus, this report aims to present a case of FB impaction in a child’s palate to increase awareness regarding this clinical presentation and suggest clinical clues to a correct diagnosis.  \nCASE REPORT  \nA 13-month-old boy was referred by his pediatrician to the cleft and craniofacial clinic for evaluation of a newly developed oronasal fistula. The patient was otherwise healthy, and his parents denied any history of trauma, family history of a cleft disorder, or any symptoms suggestive of a cleft palate or oronasal fistula (eg, nasal regurgitation, feeding difficulties, choking) .  \nOn clinical evaluation, a black object was identified in the vault of the hard palate (Fig. 1) . The senior author (A.M","cbCaigqLU9JIkwU8","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaigqLU9JIkwU8","pdf",935189,"English","# Case Report\n## Discussion","[{\"question\":\"What is the main clinical problem described in the case report?\",\"answer\":\"Foreign body impaction in the pediatric palate often masquerades as a palatal fistula or mass, leading to initial misdiagnosis and unnecessary investigations.\"},{\"question\":\"How was the foreign body identified and managed in this 13-month-old patient?\",\"answer\":\"Clinical evaluation identified a foreign body impacted in the hard palate vault, and the aluminum button cap was successfully removed under general anesthesia with adequate airway control.\"},{\"question\":\"What clues suggest palatal foreign body impaction as a differential diagnosis?\",\"answer\":\"In children under 4 years old, a sudden-onset palatal mass or fistula without prior palatal pathology and without symptoms such as feeding difficulty, nasal regurgitation, speech problems, or airway symptoms should raise suspicion, especially when an isolated hard palate cleft or fistula spares the velum.\"}]","Foreign Body Impaction in the Pediatric Palate - A Case Report of a Frequently Misdiagnosed Condition | PDF",1790674601]