Removal of a suture needle: a case report

Abstract

Background Foreign bodies may be embedded or left behind in the oral cavity during oral surgical procedure. The loss of instruments such as impression material, surgical gauze, and broken injection needles are commonly reported in the dental field. These complications are generally symptomatic and show signs of inflammation, pain, and purulent discharge. Accidental breakage of suture needles is a rare but potentially dangerous event. Case presentation In this report, we present one case of lost suture needle during the procedure of flap operation at local dental clinic and its successful removal under local/general anesthesia administration via CBCT with a help of two reference needles to localize the 6-0 nylon needle and consulting with the clinician. Conclusion CT scanning taken while mouth-closing may not be accurate with regard to real location measurement performed while mouth-opening. If so, other up-to-date radiographic devices and methods to retrieve a needle are recommended.

Broken Needle Embedded in the Body during Vascular Puncture

“…The incidence of a broken needle or needle breakage is not unknown. Broken needles have been reported during dental procedures [ 2 , 3 ], laparoscopy [ 4 ], surgical operation [ 1 ], percutaneous needle biopsy [ 5 ], endobronchial ultrasound-guided-transbronchial needle aspiration [ 6 ], antegrade suture passer of shoulder [ 7 ], bone biopsy [ 8 ], acupunctures [ 9 ], spinal anesthesia [ 10 , 11 ], and the injection of drugs [ 12 , 13 ]. Seven case reports of broken needles during various procedures were reported in 2021 from a PubMed ® search.…”

“…It was identified by intraoperative C-arm radiography and was removed using a pacemaker magnet [ 4 ]. However, a broken needle embedded completely in the soft tissue can be removed by surgical exploration [ 1 , 13 , 14 ]. A broken needle embedded in the bone can be retrieved using a drill bit [ 8 , 16 ].…”

“…As the number of procedures using needles increases, the number of needle-related problems also increase. Limited visibility, difficult access, sudden movement of patients, inappropriate size of the instruments, lack of experience of operators or mishandling by them [ 1 ], and hard site of injection may increase the risk of needle-related problems such as needle breakage, displacement, embedding, or residue [ 1 ]. The above-mentioned risk factors, leading to increased instances of needle breakage are related to the operator or patient.…”