[Abdominal parietal abscess secondary to the absorption of a knife by a mental patient, Treichville University Hospital, Côte d'Ivoire].

Abstract

Case report: We present the successful management of the consequences of voluntary knife ingestion in a 24-year-old male with undocumented psychiatric disorders. The patient was admitted to the emergency department with a fistulized epigastric skin abscess, with the tip of a knife protruding from it. This extraordinary case involved the migration of an ingested knife, which perforated the stomach and externalized through an epigastric abscess. Surgical removal of the foreign body was performed.

Discussion: Several hypotheses explain the ingestion of the knife in a person with psychiatric disorders, including self-mutilation, the pernicious mystical influence of malevolent third parties, or self-administration of a neomystical ritual.

Conclusion: The development of a skin abscess secondary to foreign body ingestion is rare but should be considered in the absence of other causes.