Multiple sewing needles ingestion: a case report and review of the literatures

Abstract

Sharp foreign body ingestion and management pose a great challenge to the surgeon. Majority of ingested foreign bodies pass through the gastrointestinal tract spontaneously. Organ perforations and possible migration should be kept in mind in patients with abdominal pain when the progress of the foreign body through the gastrointestinal tract cannot be ascertained by radiography. A 26-year-old male psychiatric patient presented with epigastric pain following ingestion of 18 sewing needles. His abdominal radiograph showed multiple metallic foreign bodies in the abdominal cavity consistent with the shape of sewing needles. He passed some needles spontaneously while the others which were retained were removed via a laparotomy after a successful pre-operative localization. Post-operative period was uneventful. A deliberate ingestion of foreign bodies should be kept in mind in patients with psychiatric disorders and mental retardation when they present with abdominal pain to the emergency department. An initial wait and see line of management may be instituted with the hope of spontaneous passage which can be monitored via radiological means. However, if the objects fail to pass naturally, surgery is indicated. Sharp foreign bodies which fail to pass spontaneously should be surgically removed after a proper localization since they could cause life threatening complications.