The problem of retained surgical bodies (RSB) after surgery is an issue for surgeons, hospitals and the entire medical team. They have potentially harmful consequences for the patient as they can be life threatening and usually, a further operation is necessary. The incidence of RSB is between 0.3 to 1.0 per 1,000 abdominal operations, and they occur due to a lack of organisation and communicat...

BACKGROUND: Gauze dressing continues to be the most commonly used wound dressing. However, because of its porous structure it is not a barrier to bacterial penetration. Binding an antimicrobial agent to the gauze fibers may prevent bacterial migration through the gauze and thus allow gauze to become a bacterial barrier. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of gauze treate...

BACKGROUND Transhiatal esophagectomy for esophageal cancer implies blind manipulation of the intrathoracic esophagus. We report a secure hemostatic method with gauze packing in transhiatal esophagectomy. METHODS The gauze-packing technique is utilized for hemostasis just after removal of the thoracic esophagus during transhiatal esophagectomy. After confirming cancer-free margins, the abdomin...

Gossypiboma refers to a mass resulting from a retained gauze pad accidentally left within the body after surgery. Although the clinical features are diverse, it is often found incidentally as a mass having an internal cystic change and adhesion to adjacent organs. Abdominal computed tomography (CT) is helpful, yet the initial diagnosis can be misleading in cases with atypical findings. We repor...