Retained surgical sponge: Medicolegal aspects

There is ample literature on the risk of retained sponges, instruments, and miscellaneous small items in patients after surgery. The majority of retained surgical items (RSI) are surgical sponges [1 –4] inadvertently left behind in the abdominal cavity [5–7]. Such intraoperative mistakes occur most often during emergency procedures, unplanned changes in operative procedures during surgery, and in patients with high body-mass index [8–10]. The time to discovery of retained surgical sponges varies considerably: they may be detected at control examination during the early postoperative period [7] or weeks to years after surgery when patients present with gastrointestinal symptoms, including abdominal bloating and pain.
Source: Legal Medicine - Category: Forensic Medicine Authors: Tags: Case Report Source Type: research