PP 17. A Very Rare Cause Of Abdominal Pain: Three Lead Shots Within The Appendix Vermiformis

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O. Veli Ozkan, V. Muderris, F. Altintoprak, O. Yagmurkaya, O. Yalkin, F. Celebi

18:16 - 18:22h at Margrit Room

Categories: Gastrointestinal Surgery, Poster Session , Robotic and Minimal Invasive Surgery

Session: Poster (P2) - Gastrointestinal Surgery / Minimal Invasive

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Background
Most ingested foreign bodies usually pass out in the feces uneventfully. Complications such as intestinal perforation, bleeding usually occur with sharp, thin, stiff, pointed and long objects. The majority of these objects are radiopaque. In the present case, we describe the management of three lead shots within the appendix vermiformis.

Material and Methods
A 45 year-old male was admitted to the polyclinics suffering from abdominal pain with a history of 4 months. A further history from the patient revealed that he had eaten hunted rabbit meat on numerous occasions and three lead shots were ingested  unintentionally due to this experience.

Result
Plain abdominal films and barium enema demonstrated the foreign body in the right lower abdominal quadrant. Since the lead shots were supposed to have migrated into the extraluminal region, a surgical intervention was made to remove them by laparotomy under scopy guidance.The foreign bodies were found to lie in the appendix vermiformis. Appendectomy was performed. On pathologic examination, three lead shots were embedded in the appendix with signs of intramucosal inflammation.

Conclusion
Foreign bodies causing appendicitis are rare. However, if stiff or pointed objects get into the appendiceal lumen they have a high risk of appendicitis, perforation or abdominal pain. Surgery should be carried out to remove ingested foreign bodies within the  appendix by appendectomy.