title: [Body-packer & body-stuffer - a medical challenge].
abstract: Since the seventies, the practice of drug smuggling in the form of body packing has increased in the Western world. The goal of our study was to present an algorithm for the safe management of intracorporal drug transport based on clinical experience and current evidence. The retrospective study, conducted over the past four years in our hospital prison, analyzes and discusses the diagnostic and therapeutic concepts. Thirty-four patients hospitalized 37 times in a 48-month period were included. In 28 patients drug packages were identified. Only two patients suffered from serious complications. The study demonstrates that following a specifically designed management algorithm based on clinical experience and principles of evidence-based medicine can optimize risk management, improve quality assurance and patient safety.
authors.affiliation: Universitätsklinik für Allgemeine Innere Medizin, Inselspital, Universitätsspital Bern.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gsell
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Perrig
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Eichelberger
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Chatterjee
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Stoll
authors.forename: Z
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Stanga
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000465:Algorithms; D000701:Analgesics, Opioid / Q000506:poisoning; D003042:Cocaine / Q000506:poisoning; D003132:Commerce; D003415:Crime; D004335:Drug and Narcotic Control; D004562:Electrocardiography; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005547:Foreign Bodies / Q000150:complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D005765:Gastrointestinal Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D007792:Lactulose / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use; D054368:Laxatives / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use; D007902:Length of Stay; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011041:Poisoning / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy; D011860:Radiography, Abdominal; D012307:Risk Factors; D013997:Time Factors; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D014186:Transportation; D014463:Ultrasonography
chemical_list: D000701:Analgesics, Opioid; D005765:Gastrointestinal Agents; D054368:Laxatives; D007792:Lactulose; D003042:Cocaine