A group of doctors have reported a bizarre case in which they were forced to remove more than 450 small metal objects from the stomach of a 37-year-old man.
Ultimately, over 3 kilos of screws, metal nuts, keys, plaques and ‘other metal parts’ as well as stones were found in the patient’s body.
Surprising X-rays reveal a metal mass blocking the exit of the man’s stomach, causing him to suffer from chronic stomach pain and frequent vomiting, preventing him from eating or drinking.
Doctors from the Iranian city of Ahvaz, near the border with Iraq, who reported the case said the patient was eventually diagnosed with psychosis, a mental illness in which a person loses touch with reality.
Documenting the case in the Journal of Medical Case ReportsAccording to the doctors, they suspected that the patient had been ingesting the metal particles for at least three months.
Surprising X-rays show the mass of metal blocking the exit of the man’s stomach. It is believed the 37-year-old swallowed the collection of metal for at least three months.
An endoscopy, in which a small flexible camera is inserted into the throat, also confirmed the metal mass
Doctors took the man to an operating room and removed a total of 452 “screws, nuts, keys, stones and other metal parts” weighing 2.9 kg (6.4 lb) through an incision in his abdomen.
The patient reportedly recovered well from the surgery and was diagnosed with psychosis shortly thereafter.
Psychosis can take the form of hallucinations, but can also lead to delusions about the real world and to confused and bizarre thoughts.
Psychosis is usually caused by another mental illness, such as severe, chronic depression, or by other causes, such as a head injury, a brain tumor, or drug addiction.
The doctors who described the recent case did not specify what they thought caused the man’s psychosis, but they did note that he was “strongly addicted to opium.”
Despite the massive amount of metal the man had ingested, he apparently did not suffer from the condition before he was first admitted to hospital.
Doctors removed the man from the operating room and removed a total of 452 “screws, nuts, keys, stones and other metal parts” weighing 2.9 kg (6.4 lb) through an incision in his abdomen.
Further examination revealed that no metal objects had entered other parts of his digestive system.
Doctors said their patient was diagnosed with psychosis three days after his stomach surgery and was transferred to a psychiatric facility a week after the operation.
They added that the patient returned to them two weeks later for a postoperative evaluation, but there were no signs of complications.
Although the term is not used in the case report, the compulsive consumption of non-edible items such as hair, paper, and sand is medically referred to as pica.
Young children and adults with learning disabilities are among the most common types of pica sufferers. Adults who are under mental stress or have iron or zinc deficiencies in their diets can also sometimes develop pica.
Pregnant women can also develop pica. It is thought that this is a response to their body’s need for certain nutrients.
