Woman Complaining Of Stomach Pain Had 7cm Piece Of Dental Brace Stuck Inside Intestine After 10 Yrs

A woman with agonising stomach pain had a piece of dental wire stuck inside her intestine - ten years after her braces were removed.

The 30-year-old showed up at the emergency department of a hospital in Australia complaining of severe cramping for two days.

Medics first thought she may have gallstones or a 'fish bone' blocking the bile duct.

But an X-ray revealed the seven-centimetre piece of wire had punctured her small bowel in several places.

Dr. Talia Shepherd, one of the treating physicians, told ABC Radio Perth : "After looking at the CT scan, at first we thought it was a fish bone, because that's a pretty common thing to find in the stomach."

As the intestine had been pierced in multiple spots, it had twisted around on itself, causing a condition known as volvulus.

This, along with the extreme pain the woman was experiencing, led doctors to determine that emergency surgery was needed.

The woman said it had been a decade since she had worn braces, and she didn't remember ever swallowing a piece of wire or having a wire go missing.

Shepherd said the case is so unusual because of the 10 years the wire went unnoticed.

She said: "I think it was probably just sitting there in her stomach the whole time, and then when the small bowel was punctured, that's when the pain started."

"Usually, when people have an injury related to swallowing something, they remember accidentally swallowing it or intentionally swallowing it," said Raymond, who is a spokeswoman for the American College of Gastroenterology.

"But that she doesn't remember getting a relatively large piece of wire down there a decade before is strange."

The woman made a full recovery with no further complications.



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