title: Intraperitoneal foreign body as a cause of acute abdomen in pregnancy.
abstract: Although surgical textbooks commonly include foreign bodies in the differential diagnosis of acute abdomen, this cause of abdominal pain has not been reported in the obstetric literature. A 35-year-old woman presented at 24 weeks' gestation with right lower quadrant pain and peritoneal signs. The only abnormal finding at exploratory laparotomy was a free-floating intraperitoneal foreign body, presumably left inadvertently during prior surgery. The differential diagnosis of acute abdomen in pregnancy should include intraperitoneal foreign body in any woman with a history of previous abdominal surgery.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Tripler Army Medical Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: J B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Hall
authors.forename: J P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Bruner
mesh_terms: D000006:Abdomen, Acute / Q000209:etiology*; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D005547:Foreign Bodies / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis; D006801:Humans; D010529:Peritoneal Cavity; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000175:diagnosis