Abstract

Impaction of an ingesfed foreigm body in the colon is uncommon but surgical or endoscopic intervention is occasionally needed when serious complicafions such as perforation, obstruction or hemorrhage occur. Several factors may predispose a patient to ingestion and subsequent impaction of lower intestinal foreign body. It is more common in the elderly who wear dentures, in the mentally infirm, in chronic alcoholics or rapid eating. The majority of impaction occurs at narrowing and angulation such as ileocecal valve or rectosigmoid junction. The diagnosis of lower intestinal foreign body should be considered, among more common conditions, in the differential diagnosis of elderly patients who present with altered bowel habits. We report the case with a literature review that successfully endoscopically removed the fish bones impacted in the rectosigmoid colon complicated by rectal bleeding. (Korean J Gastrointest Endosc 2001;23;49-52)

• Keywords: Colonic foreign body , Fish bones , Rectal bleeding