One woman had a piece of a fetal heart monitor left inside her abdomen after a cesarean section. Other surgery objects "left inside" include a seven-inch clamp left inside a man after abdominal surgery and a 13-inch retractor left inside another man's body.
Out of the 54 patients in the study who had filed malpractice claims, a total of 61 "foreign objects" were found. The most commonly "left inside" object? Sponges. Here's a further breakdown of what the researchers found:
37 patients had sponges in them
4 patients had clamps
- 13 patients had other instruments including retractors and electrodes
Patients typically required a second surgery to remove the objects, which could cause tears, obstructions, infections or other complications. The objects can be left in the abdomen, pelvis, chest, thorax, vagina, spinal canal, face, brain, extremities or other body areas.
CID
