A man who just had surgical staples removed from his stomach “forcibly” sneezed, causing his incision site to rupture.
A man who had recently undergone abdominal surgery experienced a shocking event when he sneezed out parts of his large intestine while enjoying breakfast with his wife in a Florida diner.
This rare occurrence, known as evisceration, is a “rare complication of abdominal surgery,” according to a report in the American Journal of Medical Case Reports.
The 63-year-old man had recently undergone a cystectomy, a surgical procedure involving the bladder, with the incision site sealed using surgical staples.
The morning of the incident, he had visited his urology clinic for a routine check-up. The report states, “His wound appeared well-healed, and the overlying staples were removed. He and his wife went to breakfast to celebrate.”
However, during their meal, the man sneezed “forcibly,” followed by a coughing fit, which caused his surgical site to rupture.
“He immediately noticed a ‘wet’ sensation and pain in his lower abdomen,” the report describes. “Looking down, he observed several loops of pink bowel protruding from his recent surgical site.”
The man contemplated driving himself to the hospital but was concerned about further injury. Ultimately, his wife called for an ambulance.
When the paramedics arrived, they found a three-inch section of his incision had ruptured, with “large amounts of bowel” protruding out.
The paramedic initially considered pushing the intestines back inside manually but opted to keep them moist with a pad soaked in saline fluid. She then wrapped the man in gauze to keep the exposed bowel close to his body.
At the hospital, the man’s vital signs were found to be within normal limits. During surgery, “no evidence of injury” was found on his bowels, which were then put back inside his body. The wound was re-sealed using a “variety of sutures.”
Just six days after the alarming event, the man was discharged from the hospital. His condition was described as having a “reassuring abdominal examination.”
The report sheds light on the complication he experienced, known as wound dehiscence. This involves the reopening of a previously closed wound. According to the National Library of Medicine, wound dehiscence is “a partial or total separation of previously approximated wound edges, due to a failure of proper wound healing.”
However, the report adds that “evisceration through the abdominal surgical site after cystectomy is poorly described,” noting that only seven known cases of evisceration following a cystectomy have been reported.
