title: Foreign material in the gastrointestinal tract: cocaine packets.
abstract: Smuggling drugs by swallowing or inserting into a body cavity is not only a serious and growing international crime, but can also lead to lethal medical complications. The most common cause of death in 'body packers', people transporting drugs by ingesting a packet into the gastrointestinal tract, is acute drug toxicity from a ruptured packet. However, more than 30 years after the initial report of body packing, there is still no definitive treatment protocol for the management of this patient group. The treatment strategy is determined according to the particular condition of the patient and the clinical experience of the treatment center. Surgical intervention is also less common now, due to both the use of improved packaging materials among smugglers and a shift towards a more conservative medical approach. Herein, we report a case of toxicity from ingested packets of cocaine that leaked and, despite surgery, resulted in exitus of the patient.
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Acibadem University, Istanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Nurten Turkel
authors.initials: NT
authors.lastname: Kucukmetin
authors.affiliation: Intensive Care Unit, Acibadem International Hospital, Istanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Bulent
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Gucyetmez
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Acibadem International Hospital, Istanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Tuncer
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Poyraz
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, Medistate Kavacik Hospital, Istanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Sadik
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yildirim
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Acibadem International Hospital, Istanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Gungor
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Boztas
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Acibadem University, Istanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Nurdan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Tozun
keywords: Body packers; Cocaine toxicity; Gastrointestinal tract; Surgery; Treatment