A Case Report on Challenges in Retrieving an Ingested Mobile Phone

Background: This case report discusses our experience of managing a rare case of mobile phone ingestion by trial of endoscopy followed by surgery.

Presentation of Case: A 25 year old male prisoner presented with history of 9 days old foreign body ingestion with dull aching upper abdominal pain. Clinical examination was unremarkable. Serial radiograph monitoring was done and patient was posted for endoscopic removal of foreign body. A semi opened mobile phone noted and due to its bigger size and difficulty in aligning using available retrieval devices, only back cover with battery was removed. Patient was posted for elective surgery to remove the remaining device and the body of the mobile was retrieved. Patient had an uneventful recovery and was discharged on post operative day 8.

Discussion: Mobile phone ingestion is a rare encounter with no standard approach. Usage of endoscopy for large foreign body retrieval is questionable considering the available devices. Direct surgical approach not only saves time and energy, but also skips complications of endoscopy and frequent anaesthesia.

Conclusion: Endoscopic retrieval of large foreign bodies, like mobile phones, may be challenging and may require surgical intervention. Modification in existing retrieval devices to assure better grip and alignment in endoscopy can be helpful for retrieval of larger foreign bodies, and pre-endoscopic dimension of foreign body should be noted and accordingly feasibility of retrieval should be taken into account.