13 hairpins, 5 safety pins, 5 razor blades removed from 20-year-old Puducherry youth's stomach

Chandigarh, August 21

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In a bizarre case, the doctors of Gastroenterology and Medical Centre (GEM) Hospital, a private hospital in Puducherry, have performed a special surgery to remove 13 hairpins, five safety pins and five razor blades from a 20-year-old man’s stomach.

The patient had been complaining of severe abdominal pain, blood vomiting and abnormal-coloured stool for weeks before being admitted to the hospital on August 7. The patient denied consuming any foreign bodies. However, an endoscopic scan showed a hardened mass in his stomach.

Dr K Sasikumar, surgical gastroenterologist, Gem Hospital, who led the operation team, said, “This collection of objects is referred to as a ‘foreign body bezoar’, which could potentially lead to intestinal blockages and perforations.”

The parents of the patient were reluctant for an open surgery, hence a two-hour-long endoscopic surgery was performed on August 8.

The surgery removed more than 20 sharp objects from the patient’s stomach. The patient showed good signs post-surgery and had started eating normal oral diet on August 9.

The patient has had psychiatric problems and seizure problems since childhood.

It is believed that the patient had consumed the objects after mixing them with food. Fortunately, the sharp objects had not caused any internal tearing.

The patient is currently undergoing psychological counselling to address the issue.