title: Sonographic appearance of a retained surgical sponge in the neck.
abstract: We report the sonographic appearance and clinical course of a retained surgical sponge in the neck beginning 6 months after a partial thyroidectomy. Sonograms showed a subcutaneous curvilinear hyperechoic interface with marked acoustic shadowing obscuring the left side of the neck. Three months later, a fistulous tract could be seen. Surgical exploration revealed a florid foreign tissue reaction due to a retained surgical sponge. Early diagnosis of retained sponges is important to enable expeditious removal before complications develop.
authors.affiliation: Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Burrel
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Capurro
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Arguis
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Vilana
mesh_terms: D005260:Female; D005547:Foreign Bodies / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009333:Neck / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery; D011183:Postoperative Complications; D015503:Surgical Sponges; D013965:Thyroidectomy; D014463:Ultrasonography