The tethered bezoar as a delayed complication of laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass: a case report

Known complications of Roux-en-Y gastric bypass causing abdominal pain and obstructive symptoms include biliary colic, anastomotic ulcer, anastomotic stenosis, or internal hernia. This case report describes a new complication in a patient 15 months post-bypass: a bezoar at the gastrojejunal anastomosis, the nidus of which was a length of permanent suture material which had eroded through the gastric wall. We include endoscopic images of the bezoar, a review of the related gastric bypass literature, and describe the changes made in our practice as a result of this complication.