Aspirated Denture: A Rare Cause of Empyema in an Asian Male

Here, we report the case of an undiagnosed foreign body aspiration (FBA) in a 50-year-old male who presented with fever, productive cough, and shortness of breath suggestive of pneumonia. The patient reported a history of empyema for which he underwent left-sided video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery and decortication at another facility. Careful evaluation of prior chest imaging revealed a radio-opaque linear density projecting along the left of his spine suspicious for a foreign body in the airway which was missed on radiographic evaluation at the time of empyema. On flexible fiberoptic bronchoscopy, an irretrievable foreign body was visualized in the patient’s left mainstem bronchus, which was removed via rigid bronchoscopy. This is a rare case of an aspirated denture manifesting as empyema and subsequently as pneumonia. We suggest that in patients with a recurrent chest infection, the possibility of FBA must be ruled out by detailed history and careful evaluation of imaging.