Small Bowel Obstruction Due to Migration of a Transrectally Inserted Foreign Body

A 55-year-old woman presented to the emergency department with complaints of abdominal pain, abdominal distension, retching, vomiting, and constipation for 3 days. There was no history of fever. Clinical examination revealed tender and distended abdomen with no palpable mass. Ultrasonography was inconclusive due to abdominal distension by extensive gut gases. Contrast-enhanced computed tomography revealed features of small bowel obstruction with an oblique air-density structure in the jejunal loops surrounded by oral contrast (Figure 1). After imaging and prolonged counselling, the patient confessed the actual history. The patient’s husband had inserted a long hollow stick through her anus 17 years before. The patient stated that she had removed half of the stick by breaking it, but she was not able to remove the remaining part. Due to social taboos, she did not seek medical attention at the time. Exploratory laparotomy revealed a long, hollow, wooden stick, which was removed from the intestines by opening the jejunal loops (Figure 2)