Gossypiboma diagnosed fifteen years after a cesarean section: A case report

Gossypiboma: the failure of a successful intervention

If successful surgery is the primary quest of any surgeon, unintentionally leaving behind surgical items in the operative field remains his most feared obsession. This rare but dramatic accident can lead to potentially fatal complications and turn both lives of the surgeon and the patient upside down. We present the case of a 29-year-old female patient who presented to the ER with three days history of severe diffuse abdominal pain associated with fever, biological inflammatory syndrome and well-tolerated iron deficiency anaemia. She had no past medical history except for a lower segment cesarean section 5 months ago. Abdominal MRI allowed the diagnosis of two gossypibomas responsible for two intra-abdominal collections. An emergency laparotomy allowed the removal of these foreign bodies and the management of their serious complications of intestinal perforation by the construction of a double intestinal stoma. The patient made a post-operative uneventful recovery. This observation emphasizes the need to raise the practitioner´s awareness about this differential diagnosis in every case of any poorly localized abdominal pain occurring after surgery.

Development of a Surgical Sponge Counting System Using Radiographic Images

Background. Retention of surgical sponges in patients is a relatively frequent medical malpractice. To prevent it, the surgical sites are scanned using X-ray. However, using radiography in the operation room induces X-ray exposure for both patients and staff. To prevent such issues, a novel sponge counting system was developed. Each surgical sponge used in common hospitals is composed of single radiopaque fibers. Methods. The proposed system scans surgical sponges to estimate their fiber length (EFL) and returns the number of it. In this study, an optimal image acquisition protocol was determined that allows an accurate count of sponges. X-ray doses and multi-angle image procedures were tested. Results. Measurement trials were performed and compared for both dry and blood-soaked sponges. As a result, the X-ray dose of 50 kV and 600 μA and the acquisition of 180 images per sample yielded an accurate EFL. The 180-image protocol achieved good performance in this study and allowed counting of one package of 10 sponges in 226 seconds. For these settings, a significant correlation was found between the actual number of sponges and the estimated fiber lengths. Additionally, the performance of the system was similar for either dry or blood-soaked items. Conclusion. The proposed system could accurately count surgical sponges and is a promising option in preventing the accidental retention of surgical sponges.

Gossypiboma: A Dramatic Result of Human Error, Case Report and Literature Review

Gossypiboma refers to a retained foreign object that was forgotten in the body cavity during an operation. It is a rare surgical complication that most commonly occurs after intraperitoneal abdominal emergency surgical procedures, but may also occur after virtually any type of operation. Gossypiboma can be confused with neoplastic lesions and abscess. Clinical examination and radiological findings may sometimes mislead the physician. We intend to present our cases, which is thought to be a kidney tumour and bladder cancer but resulted gossypiboma which is a condition that is caused by a forgotten sponge during the operation and it can mimic the cancer. During the operation, the team must work in coordination and be careful. Unnecessary operations in such situation can significantly increase the patient's morbidity.