The man had a toothpick pierced his colon.

A man in Quang Ninh accidentally swallowed a bamboo toothpick, approximately 30mm long, which pierced the wall of his sigmoid colon. This foreign object punctured the intestinal wall and formed a small abscess around the site of the injury.

According to information from Quang Ninh Provincial General Hospital, the medical team recently received a male patient, D.VT (49 years old, residing in Van Don), who was experiencing dull abdominal pain in the lower abdomen.

According to the patient, about 10 days before being admitted to the hospital, Mr. T experienced vague symptoms that he dismissed as insignificant. However, the persistent pain gradually increased, affecting his daily life, so he went to Quang Ninh Provincial General Hospital for examination.

After a clinical examination combined with abdominal ultrasound and CT scan, doctors discovered a rod-shaped foreign object, approximately 30mm long, penetrating the wall of the sigmoid colon. The foreign object had perforated the bowel wall and formed a small abscess around the site of the injury.

The surgical team removed the foreign object from patient D.VT. (Photo: Provided by the hospital).

During the interdisciplinary consultation to assess the injury, the doctors determined that the abscess was localized, small in size, and showed no signs of peritonitis. Instead of opting for open surgery or laparoscopic surgery to remove the foreign body and treat the colon injury, the treatment team decided to use a minimally invasive local intervention method.

After administering local anesthesia, the team of doctors from the Diagnostic Imaging - Radiology department performed percutaneous abscess drainage under ultrasound guidance to control infection. Simultaneously, utilizing the drainage tube's tunnel and specialized forceps from gastrointestinal endoscopy, the team successfully accessed and removed the foreign object. The foreign object was identified as a sharp piece of bamboo toothpick approximately 30mm long.

The intervention went smoothly; the patient did not require major surgery, including abdominal incision or colon resection. Following the procedure, abdominal pain significantly decreased, inflammatory markers improved well, and the abscess was effectively controlled. The patient is currently continuing antibiotic treatment, under close monitoring, and recovering steadily.

The image shows a foreign object, a bamboo toothpick, being removed from the patient's colon. Photo: Provided by the hospital.

According to Dr. Ngo Quang Chuc, Head of the Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Interventional Radiology at Quang Ninh Provincial General Hospital, foreign objects in the digestive tract are very common during eating and most can be naturally eliminated through the digestive system. However, sharp foreign objects such as toothpicks, fish bones, chicken bones, etc., can sometimes silently pierce the wall of the digestive tract, causing intestinal perforation, abdominal abscesses, or dangerous peritonitis.

Doctors at Quang Ninh Provincial General Hospital advise people to be cautious about their eating habits. If symptoms such as prolonged abdominal pain, fever, digestive disorders, or other unusual signs after eating appear, patients should seek medical attention for timely examination and diagnosis to avoid potentially dangerous complications.

Source: https://suckhoedoisong.vn/nguoi-dan-ong-bi-tam-tre-dam-thung-dai-trang-169260602181219939.htm