Weirdest/most difficult thing swallowed by a patient

Nurses General Nursing

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We're talking about pica in another thread and its left me wondering - what is the weirdest or most impossible thing swallowed by a patient that you have cared for?

(No urban legends, if you don't mind. Hoping for real stories.)

Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.

He put the hose in the other end of the GI tract and inflated himself.

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He put the hose in the other end of the GI tract and inflated himself.

The things that people think of... I could never be that creative.

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Specializes in School Nursing, Hospice,Med-Surg.
The things that people think of... I could never be that creative.

I know, right?? And to think how boring I am to just sit around in my free time watching TV and reading books. I'll NEVER get my own reality show at this rate!

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Specializes in General Surgery, NICU.

wow Farawyn, used tampon!! :wideyed:

I had a patient "accidentally" drink his own urine (he peed in a plastic drinking cup and left it on his bedside table). And took care of a gentleman who frequently swallowed razors; he ended up having severe complications from his last attempt and was in the hospital for months.

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Specializes in LTC, assisted living, med-surg, psych.

Marbles. The big ones.

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Specializes in Cardiology, Cardiothoracic Surgical.

I'm sure I told this story before: had a psych nursing instructor relay her experience with pica in a roommate.

My instructor was a nursing student back in the era of starched caps and white dresses with hose. One night, she was pressing her uniform ready for clinical and could not find the Argo (?) cornstarch. She had to go to the store to buy more. She did this several more times that semester, even hiding the Argo away. She finally confronted her roommate, also a nursing student, about it "How much cornstarch do you need to press your clothes?", which her roommate promptly denied ever doing.

Turns out my instructor discovered her roommate hiding in the closet one day, happily munching away on the Argo and some bobby pins to boot. My instructor was shocked, I believe the girl's parents were notified and she was whisked off to the psych facility or ER, can't remember. Needless to say, she was withdrawn from classes.

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Specializes in Dialysis.

Working in the ER many years ago, a patient came in complaining of severe rectal pain. We called in a GI doc, he setup in the ER room to do a scope. When he put the scope in, all we could see was " Spread a Little Sunshine: He had inserted a mustard jar, the glass kind!

Luckily the patient was sedated. Our laughter could be heard outside by the security guards!!

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I'm in the OR. Our hospital has a collection of "things retrieved" from patients. It's - impressive. Including squirrel bones (no idea on the story behind that one).

Common items include pens, spoons, forks, sporks, etc - being put places they do not belong. Which is when they need to have an EGD, cysto, ex-lap, exam under anesthesia, etc.

Somewhat more entertaining is when patients "self-implant" items in places other than the GI or GU tract. Downright scary is what it is.

We also have the "more common" airway foreign bodies (common in kids) with things like batteries, marbles, etc.

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Baby in our NICU born with 2 natal teeth. One day the nurse noticed that one was missing. Found the tooth on x-ray in the stomach! Amazing that she didn't aspirate or choke.

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The inside of a instant heat pack. Turns out it is non toxic, likely for this reason. My patient was more confused than I realized! I was particularly shocked because I couldn't get him to take a bite of his dinner a few minutes before that.

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Specializes in Med nurse in med-surg., float, HH, and PDN.
The inside of a instant heat pack. Turns out it is non toxic, likely for this reason. My patient was more confused than I realized! I was particularly shocked because I couldn't get him to take a bite of his dinner a few minutes before that.

Ah, yeah, but the inside of a heat pack is sooo much better than some of the food patients get! :woot:

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I thought she put it in quotations because that's how the patient phrased it, which made the story all the more funny to me.

Yes. That is why I put it in quotation marks.

Thank you

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