Doctors were astounded to find a woman with stomach pain and nausea had a condom inside her appendix. The 26-year-old came to hospital complaining of pain and tenderness on the right side of her pelvis, leaving her unable to eat and suffering from a fever.
A scan revealed her abdomen was swollen with fluid so the medics, at a hospital in Cameroon, came to the conclusion she had appendicitis. They rushed her for emergency surgery to remove the infected organ before it burst – but noticed it felt unusual as they cut it out.
They discovered the organ had a piece of condom stuck inside it – which they believe is the first case of its kind to be reported in the medical literature. ‘We blindly dissected the appendix and found an incomplete piece of rubbery material which was consistent with a condom,’ said the doctors.
When the patient woke up from the procedure, she confirmed she had accidentally swallowed a condom two weeks before. While with her boyfriend the sheath had become loose – and accidentally slipped down her throat, she said.
She had not sought medical help after discovering pieces of the condom in her feces five days later. Nor did she think her symptoms were due to the incident. Doctors believe the condom was torn into fragments as it traveled through her gastrointestinal tract, with part of it becoming lodged in her appendix.
