Colon perforation caused by swallowing a shrimp leg: A case report

Ingestion of a foreign body rarely results in perforation of the gastrointestinal tract. Foreign bodies such as dentures, fish bones, chicken bones, toothpicks and cocktail sticks have been known to cause bowel perforation; however, bowel perforation caused by shrimp leg has not been reported so far.

We report a case of a 69-years-old man who presented with a 4-months epigastric pain. Laboratory data revealed inflammation at the first hospital visit. Computed tomography revealed a hypodense lesion containing a hyperdense foreign body in the abdomen. Intra-abdominal abscess caused by foreign body perforation was diagnosed.

An increased incidence of perforation has been reported in association with Meckel's diverticulum, the appendix, and diverticular disease. The abdominal abscess in this case was located beside the diverticulum of transverse colon, so the perforation most likely occurred in the diverticulum of transverse colon.

Perforation of colon by shrimp leg is very rare and not reported currently. Although some cases have been successfully treated chronic foreign-body perforation with abscess by using antibiotics alone, typical treatments remains surgical drainage of the abscess and removal of foreign body.