RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Pins and needles in the groin: an incidental finding of retained needle fragments in an intravenous drug user
JF BMJ Case Reports
JO BMJ Case Reports
FD BMJ Publishing Group Ltd
SP bcr-2018-226220
DO 10.1136/bcr-2018-226220
VO 12
IS 2
A1 Joshua Gladman
YR 2019
UL http://casereports.bmj.com/content/12/2/bcr-2018-226220.abstract
AB A female intravenous drug user was reviewed in A&E following a deliberate overdose. After claiming to have swallowed a razor blade, an abdominal radiograph was performed; this showed a linear metallic density projected over the right side of the pelvis, eventually identified as a needle fragment. Subsequent CT imaging revealed three additional needles situated within the groin. Duplex assessment also identified bilateral arteriovenous fistulae. The patient remained asymptomatic and was managed conservatively. She could recall several occasions when a needle had broken while injecting. This scenario was more likely if the needle had been used many times previously, causing it to become blunt and bent. There are cases reported of adverse patient outcomes secondary to broken needle fragments but awareness among medical professionals remains poor.