Intestinal obstruction in an autistic adolescent

Bezoars and foreign bodies are frequently encountered in children with psychiatric disorders. Eating disorder (called pica) occurs predominantly in some high-risk patients such as psychiatric and mentally disabled children. Small-bowel obstruction is an uncommon complication of ingested foreign body because the foreign body is able to cross the whole small intestine and be excreted in the feces. We present the case history of an autistic adolescent who was operated on because of bowel obstruction due to an unusual foreign body.