Kritika Tiwari, Assistant Professor, Department of Surgery, University College of Medical Sciences and Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital, Delhi,, India
Garima Chawla PG Student, Department of Surgery, University College of Medical Sciences and Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital, Delhi,, India
Mukesh Kumar PG Student, Department of Surgery, University College of Medical Sciences and Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital, Delhi,, India
Address for correspondence: Kritika Tiwari,, Assistant Professor, Department of Surgery, University College of Medical Sciences and Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital, Delhi,, India E-mail: aimgame20@gmail.com
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Tiwari K, Chawla G, Kumar M. Sewing Needles Threatening Pneumothorax: An Unusual Case of Foreign Body insertion in Axilla. New Indian J Surg. 2025;16(2):79-82.
Timeline
Received : May 28, 2025
Accepted : June 29, 2025
Published : June 30, 2025
Abstract
Background: This is an unusual case of a young Indian girl who inserted multiple sewing needles, allegedly to clean her axillary sinus tract, which then went on to become life-threatening for her, and required a formal exploration under general anesthesia. Case: We report a case of self-insertion of 3 sewing needles in the right axilla for cleaning a sinus tract which migrated till the intercostal muscles threatening a pneumothorax, and discuss management of the case. Conclusion: A skillful history, appropriate imaging and early surgical intervention are a must to correctly diagnose and adequately treat retained foreign bodies in breast or axilla, thereby preventing life-threatening complications.
References
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Data Sharing Statement
There are no additional data available. All raw data and code are available upon request.
Funding
This research received no funding.
Author Contributions
All authors contributed significantly to the work and approve its publication.
Ethics Declaration
This article does not involve any human or animal subjects, and therefore does not require ethics approval.
Acknowledgements
We would like to express our gratitude to the patients, their families, and all those who have contributed to this study.
Conflicts of Interest
No conflicts of interest in this work.
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Cite this article
Tiwari K, Chawla G, Kumar M. Sewing Needles Threatening Pneumothorax: An Unusual Case of Foreign Body insertion in Axilla. New Indian J Surg. 2025;16(2):79-82.
This license enables reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format for noncommercial purposes only, and only so long as attribution is given to the creator.
This license enables reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format for noncommercial purposes only, and only so long as attribution is given to the creator.