Abstract
Author(s): OKSANA SZOSTAK, KRZYSZTOF CZAJKOWSKI
Foreign bodies in vagina are found in approximately 4-6% of girls. Recognizing the presence ofa foreign body in children is not always easy, because they are afraid to admit this fact to theircaregivers. It is not uncommon for a small foreign body to remain unnoticed in the vagina fora long period of time because it may not be causing any symptoms, or the symptoms may benonspecific. The most common foreign body in the vagina in adolescent girls and women isa tampon. Additional factors favoring the formation of vaginal infections in girls may be: anato-mical proximity of the anus, no fat pads of the labia, different shape and location of the hymen,no pubic hair, small inner labia, as well as neglecting personal hygiene and curiosity of own body.A foreign body, staying in the vagina, particularly for a long time, can be irritating to the mucousmembrane of the vagina and cause chronic inflammation of the reproductive organs, causing painin the vulva, bloody or purulent vaginal discharge, often with unpleasant odor. Regardless of location,the foreign body should be removed as soon as possible, because its retention can lead to variouskinds of complications, such as chronic inflammation, adhesions, the formation of fistulas. Re-moving the foreign body from the vagina does not always put an end to the patient’s health problems,as additional disorders requiring surgical intervention are likely to occur.We present a case of a 12-year-old girl with recurrent hematocolpos. The patient was hospitalizedseveral times in the Gynecology ward, because of recurrent abdominal pain caused by accumu-lation of menstrual blood in the vagina due to the adhesion in the upper third part. Adhesions inthe vagina were caused by spilt contents of a wrist-watch alkaline battery at the age of 5 years.