Meckel's Diverticulum as a Trap

Although foreign body ingestion is a commonly seen accident in children and guidelines are available for the treatment, cases are not always straight forward as this report proves: A 7-year-old patient presented to the emergency department 2 hours after ingestion of a pin. Radiological imaging had revealed the foreign body to be already within the small bowel beyond reach of an endoscopy. On day 17 after ingestion the patient presented with recurrent abdominal pain and subfebrile temperatures. A laparotomy and revision of small bowel was performed, where a Meckel’s diverticulum containing the pin was found and removed. We conclude that if a foreign body does not move antegrade anymore on imaging in 3 days, or the patient becomes symptomatic, surgical removal must be considered, also having the rare possibility of a Meckel’s diverticulum functioning as a trap at the back of one’s mind.

Keywords: Foreign body ingestion, endoscopy, guidelines, children.