Journey of a swallowed toothbrush to the colon.
Toothbrush swallowing is a rare event. Because no cases of spontaneous passage have been reported, prompt removal is recommended to prevent the development of complications. Most swallowed toothbrushes have been found in the esophagus or the stomach of affected patients, and there has been no previously reported case of a toothbrush in the colon. Here, we report a case of a swallowed toothbrush found in the ascending colon that caused a fistula between the right colon and the liver, with a complicating small hepatic abscess. This patient was successfully managed using exploratory laparotomy. To our knowledge, this is the first documented case of a swallowed toothbrush found in the colon.
Kim
In Hee
IH
Department of Internal Medicine, Chonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonbuk, Korea.
Kim
Hyun Chul
HC
Koh
Kang Hun
KH
Kim
Seong Hun
SH
Kim
Sang Wook
SW
Lee
Seung Ok
SO
Lee
Soo Teik
ST
D000328:Adult; D003106:Colon / Q000293:injuries*; D003108:Colonic Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery; D003679:Deglutition; D005402:Fistula / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology; D005548:Foreign-Body Migration / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D007813:Laparotomy; D008297:Male; D014099:Toothbrushing / Q000295:instrumentation*