Foreign bodies in urinary bladder-a urological challenge

Background: Urinary tract are rare site for foreign bodies and if found, are commonly located in the urinary bladder. Autoerotic stimulation, sexual curiosity and various invasive procedures are the usual causes for insertion of foreign bodies in genitourinary system (Johnin et al., 1999) Symptoms like urinary tract infection, severe pain and hematuria can be present in some patients (Van Ophoven, 2000) Management of such cases include removal of entire foreign body with minimal trauma to the genitourinary tract (Johnin et al., 1999) Herein, we reviewed our experience regarding foreign bodies in the urinary bladder in our hospital. Materials And Methods: Medical records of all patients who were diagnosed with a foreign body in the urinary bladder between January 2013 and June2017 were reviewed. Demographics, causes, type of object found, clinical presentation, treatment and outcomes were noted . Results: Foreign body in urinary bladder were identified in 15 patients with a mean age of 32.06 years in our study period. Self - inserted objects were mainly ballpoint pen, eyebrow pencil, cotton swabs,etc. Suture material,foleys ballon fragments, piece of ureteric stent ,etc were other few foreign bodies found in urinary bladder. Major route of insertion was from urethra. Incidence was more in female compare to male. Most common presentation were with haematuria associated with frequency, urgency and pelvic pain. Majority of cases could be managed by endoscopic removal with minimal complications. Two cases were treated by open surgery. Patients symptoms gradually improved and no complications were detected during follow-up except in two cases who had urethral stricture. Conclusion: Foreign bodies are usually introduced in urethra for autoerotic stimulation and can get accidentally slip into urinary bladder. Such cases pose a challenge to the surgeon as they are usually asymptomatic or have minimal discomfort and can be treated with minimal invasive procedure.