Multiple foreign body ingestion in pica patient

Abstract

Appetite for substances that are widely non-nutritive is termed Pica and commonly seen in patients with psychiatric disorders. Their clinical presentation may be delayed and include multiple foreign bodies. Most of such ingested bodies pass through gastrointestinal tract uneventfully and only on rare instances cause obstruction or perforation. The length and sharpness of an object govern its risk of perforation. Physicians are dependent upon imaging to detect a foreign body, especially if the history of ingestion is doubtful. We present a case of pica with multiple foreign bodies diagnosed on radiography and ultrasonography with the findings correlating with surgical retrieval of objects.