Volume 1

An American text-book of the diseases of children ... / edited by Louis Starr ; assisted by Thompson S. Westcott.

Date:
1898
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: An American text-book of the diseases of children ... / edited by Louis Starr ; assisted by Thompson S. Westcott. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    639/652 (page 595)
    Foreign Bodies in the Rectum. Foreign bodies may enter the rectum from the alimentary canal or may be introduced through the anus. A great variety of foreign bodies have been thus introduced either by accident or design. Patients suffering from foreign body impacted in the rectum will have ineffectual attempts at defecation, with the passage of mucus, which is often blood-stained. In a case presenting these symptoms a careful exploration with the finger will enable the surgeon to ascer- tain the presence, the exact location, and the character of the foreign body. Treatment.—The removal of the foreign body should be accomplished with the least possible injury to the walls of the rectum. It is well first to anaesthetize the patient, and then inject into the rectum a few ounces of olive oil. When the character and position of the foreign body have been ascer- tained, it may be dislodged with the finger and removed by forceps. Where the body is irregular in shape or possesses sharp edges or angles which may cause injury to the surrounding parts, retractors or a bivalve speculum should be introduced to secure free dilatation of the anus and lower portion of the rec- tum and facilitate removal without injury to the rectal walls. Where the foreign body consists of a large mass of inspissated material, fragmentation should be resorted to in order to secure its satisfactory removal. If the foreign body has remained in position for some time and ulceration has resulted from its presence, a solution of nitrate of silver, 10 grains to the ounce of water, should be applied to the ulcerated surface, and suppositories of iodoform should also be introduced into the rectum. Extensive ulceration of the rectum following the long-con- tinued presence of a foreign body may be followed by stricture, and the pos- sibility of this condition should be guarded against by judicious dilatation by the finger or bougies.