On April 15, the Endoscopy Center - Hue Central Hospital said that it had just successfully treated a rare case of a digestive foreign object using interventional endoscopy.
Patient L.V. B. (29 years old) has a history of mental disorder and is being treated at the Department of Mental Health. During monitoring, the patient swallowed 3 toothbrushes and was transferred to the hospital at high risk of complications.
Immediately after admission, the patient was indicated for interventional endoscopy. The team successfully removed all 3 foreign objects from the digestive tract, no complications were recorded.
According to MSc.BS Pham Nhu Hien - Deputy Director of the Center for Endoscopy, this is a rare case when a patient swallows many long, hard foreign objects at the same time. A nearly 20cm long toothbrush is at risk of getting stuck, causing mucous membrane damage, even perforation or intestinal obstruction if not treated promptly. However, the case was completely treated by endoscopy, without surgery.
After 5 days of monitoring, the patient's health stabilized, recovered well and is continuing to be cared for and treated.
Through the incident, the hospital recommends that it is necessary to strengthen management and monitoring of patients with mental disorders, especially in cases with the risk of self-harm; and at the same time affirm the effectiveness of interventional laparoscopic techniques in handling complex cases.
