Textile foreign bodies left in the abdomen

The authors relate eleven cases of forgotten foreign bodies (5 swabs and 6 laparotomy pads) in the abdomen after laparotomies for biliary and digestive (5 cases), gynaecologic (3 cases), or abdominal-wall (3 cases) diseases. Ten patients recovered after surgical extraction of foreign bodies (morbidity: 2 cases) and one patient died before reoperation. This study emphasizes the severity of this complication which can and should be prevented.