Removal of a Small Bowel Bezoar Causing Bowel Obstruction via Mechanical Compression after Metal Stent Placement

Abstract

Small bowel obstructions (SBOs) that develop for various reasons often require prompt medical treatment. Migration of a gastric bezoar (indigestible foreign material that has accumulated in the stomach) is a rare cause of SBO. Treatment of a symptomatic SBO caused by a bezoar requires a multidisciplinary approach that considers the patient’s physical status and comorbidities and the bezoar volume, location, and pathology. Although surgery is the treatment of choice, endoscopic treatments such as fragmentation and retrieval may serve as alternatives. We present the first case of resolution of a large phytobezoar via mechanical compression after covered metal stent insertion, followed by stent retrieval, in a patient with a symptomatic SBO that persisted even after two sessions of push-endoscopic fragmentation.