Eight cases of perforation of the digestive tract by a fish bone

Abstract

We report eight cases of perforation of the digestive tract by a fish bone treated at the hospital from December 2000 to September 2006. The male–to–female ratio was 7:1, with an age range from 59 to 89. The affected sites included the ileum in four, transverse colon in two, and sigmoid colon in one. Operation was performed in all cases. In five cases, perforating points were detected with operation, however, we could not find them in three cases of chronic inflammation type. All patients were completely cured following extraction of fish bones.
All fish bones were able to be detected by MDCT. Before the introduction of MDCT, fish bones as well as calcification were detected in only two out of five cases.
It is not hard for us to diagnose perforation of the digestive tract by a fish bone based on clinical history and the use of MDCT. However, fish bone remnant which is left in the body can require another operation. Thus it must be taken into consideration as a differential diagnosis for acute abdomen.