Open AccessA Curious Case of Gossypibioma
Author(s) -
Siddhartha Chatterjee
Publication year - 2020
Language(s) - English
DOI - 10.33169/surg.gsoaoj-i-109
Subject(s) - gossypiboma , medicine , iliac crest , radiological weapon , surgery , presentation (obstetrics) , differential diagnosis , lumbar , case presentation , general surgery , foreign body , pathology
The term gossypibioma is used to describe a retained surgical sponge or gauze after operation. It is a rare but serious complication which is seldom reported because of the medicolegal implications. Gossypiboma usually has varied and vague presentation and is also difficult to detect on radiological investigations. It can even remain silent and present years after the operation. We report a case of a 74-year-old man who presented with chronic lump since 1 year in the right lumbar region. He had a history of spinal surgery 20 years ago.They had taken right iliac crest as a graft during that spinal surgery. Radiological investigations were inconclusive in detecting the retained gauze. A working diagnosis of soft tissue tumour-? Desmoid tumour was made on ultrasonography and an excision of lump was done where he was found to have a large gossypibioma densely adhered to the right iliac crest. Though rare, gossypibioma should be kept in mind as a differential diagnosis in postoperative cases presenting as vague pain or chronic lump even years after the operation.