Foreign Body Ingestion: Three Case Reports

Abstract

Foreign body ingestion in adults is rarely reported in our environment. While the incident is commonly deliberate in adults, it is often accidental in children. As illustrated in these case reports, diagnosis is often challenging if the act is not witnessed or reported by someone, even at the onset of complications.
 A seven-week-old boy ingested a used razor blade given to him by his three-year-old sister. The incident was reported and the object removed at laparotomy.
A 38year old woman deliberately swallowed a padlock-and-key apparently to attract her husband’s attention. Plain X-rays demonstrated a radio-opaque object first in the chest and then in the stomach. Both padlock-and-key were removed at operation.
 A 24-year old male with a psychiatric disorder was brought for treatment of an abdominal surgical wound that had failed to heal four months after appendicectomy. Wound treatment failed and exploration of the wound and laparotomy extracted metals and plastic objects.
Diagnosis of foreign body ingestion in our environment is achieved by documenting a proper history, physical evaluation and often, plain X-rays. Removal of the ingested object(s) is accomplished mainly by surgical intervention. Recovery and prognosis in most patients are usually satisfactory