Rescue a man with a toothpick perforated the intestine

14/09/2020 07:30

VTV.vn – On 8/9, Viet Duc University Hospital announced that they had received and successfully treated a patient with a toothpick caused the perforation of small intestine.

 

Previously on 1/9/2020, patient H.V.H ( 65 years old) in Ung Hoa, Ha Noi entered Viet Duc University Hospital, alert and had infection syndrome, abdominal distension, and severe pain in the right abdomen.

 

The patient had no special medical history records. One day before his admission to the hospital, Mr.H felt a lot of pain in his belly. The doctors examined the patient, performed some tests and found that the anomaly contrasting the right abdomen had penetrated the intestinal wall with free fluid. The patient was diagnosed with peritonitis due to perforation of the small intestine and underwent emergency surgery overnight.

 

Dr. Tao Minh Chau, Department of Emergency Abdominal Surgery, Viet Duc University Hospital said: Mr. H was promptly operated by laparoscopic surgery. Examination of the patient’s abdomen showed that the anomaly which had been caused by the toothpick punctured the small intestine, partly in the lumen and in the abdomen. Doctors removed the anomaly, closed the hole in the small intestine by endoscopy, cleaned the abdomen and placed the abdominal drainage system after surgery.

 

The one-hour surgery ended well. One day after surgery, the patient no longer had a fever, his stomach was less distended, and also had defecation. After 5 days of surgery, the patient no longer had an infection, was able to eat and drink while  prepared to be discharged from the hospital.

The doctors said that apart from toothpicks, doctors had also encountered many anomalies such as bones, dental prosthesis … In Mr. H’s case, if he was left to be cured late, the digestive fluids would flow widely into the abdomen leading to peritoneum inflammation which might cause the danger to his life.

 

Doctors recommend that the habit of holding toothpicks in mouth after eating is very dangerous. People can accidentally swallow a toothpick, or anomalies enter the digestive tract. Bamboo toothpicks are not broken down by digestive enzymes, so they will move throughout the length of the intestinal lumen, easily cause many complications, most serious consequence is perforation of the gastrointestinal tract and general peritonitis, affecting life or leaving many bad sequels

 

People should throw away toothpicks right after using them, do not keep them in their mouths. If they accidentally drop a toothpick in a house while having children playing around or being careless when talking, sleeping, it will be very dangerous.