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Missing Copper T Thread Ends in Emergency Surgery for Nigerian Woman
A woman in her late 30s was rushed to the hospital with severe abdominal pain and repeated vomiting after ignoring a warning sign linked to her contraceptive device for several months.Read more
According to a medical account shared by “The Women’s Doc,” the woman arrived at the hospital weak, dehydrated and unable to keep food down after vomiting continuously through the night. Her husband and sister reportedly brought her in for urgent medical attention on a busy Saturday afternoon.
Doctors initially suspected several possible causes. She had no fever, no diarrhea and no recent illness. Although she said she was on contraception, an emergency pregnancy test was still carried out to rule out an ectopic pregnancy. The result came back negative.
The situation became more concerning after the patient revealed she had not passed stool for three days, despite normally doing so daily. That detail raised suspicion of an intestinal obstruction.
“She pointed directly to the middle of her abdomen when asked where the pain was coming from,” the doctor explained. “The area was markedly tender during examination.”
Medical staff quickly stabilized her with intravenous fluids and pain medication before ordering scans. An ultrasound scan showed reduced bowel movement but did not reveal the exact cause of the blockage.
It was an abdominal X-ray that finally exposed the real problem.
Doctors discovered that her Copper T intrauterine contraceptive device was no longer inside the womb. Instead, it had migrated into her abdominal cavity after perforating the wall of her uterus.
The displaced device had triggered internal scar tissue known as adhesions. Those adhesions wrapped around part of her intestine and blocked the normal movement of food and waste through the bowel.
“That blockage was why she was vomiting repeatedly. That blockage was why she had not passed stool. That blockage was why she was in severe pain,” the doctor stated.
When questioned about the Copper T thread, the woman reportedly admitted she could not remember the last time she checked for it.
“She said it had been months since she last felt it, but because she had no symptoms at the time, she assumed it was still safely in place,” the doctor revealed.
The woman had reportedly used the device for four years before the complication occurred.
Doctors immediately prepared her for emergency surgery after showing the X-ray results to her husband and obtaining consent. During the operation, surgeons found the misplaced Copper T hidden beneath loops of intestine with multiple adhesions already formed around it.
Thankfully, the intestine had not suffered permanent damage. Surgeons successfully removed the device and freed the bowel obstruction without removing any section of the intestine.
“The relief after surgery was remarkable,” the doctor said. “The vomiting stopped, the pain settled, and her bowel movements gradually returned.”
The patient reportedly remained in the hospital for about one week before recovering fully.
Medical experts say the case highlights the importance of regular follow-up checks for women using intrauterine contraceptive devices.
“She did not end up in theatre because Copper T is unsafe,” the doctor added. “She ended up there because a simple warning sign was ignored.”
The doctor also warned women using Copper T devices not to ignore missing threads, explaining that it could mean the device has shifted, fallen out, become embedded in the womb, or in rare situations, migrated into other parts of the body.
Health professionals advise women using IUCDs to carry out regular monthly thread checks and seek immediate medical attention if the thread can no longer be felt.
See the doctor's naration bellow;
It was a busy Saturday afternoon.
I was already exhausted after attending to several HMO patients
when a woman in her late 30s was rushed into the hospital by her husband and sister.
She was holding her tummy.
The moment I saw her, I knew this was not just an ordinary stomach ache.
She looked weak.
Drained.
Visibly dehydrated.
Her face already carried that look patients have
when vomiting has taken almost all the strength out of them.
Her husband quickly explained:
“Doctor, she has been vomiting since last night.
She has severe abdominal pain
and has not been able to keep anything down.”
I began asking questions.
Was she running a fever? No.
Any diarrhea? No.
Any recent illness? No.
Could she be pregnant?
She quickly replied, “No, doctor. I’m on contraception.”
Still, because no contraceptive method is 100% foolproof,
we requested an urgent pregnancy test.
It came back negative.
So at least, we could confidently rule out an ectopic pregnancy.
I asked her to point to where the pain was.
She pointed directly to the middle of her abdomen.
When I examined her, the area was markedly tender.
Then I asked, “When last did you open your bowels?”
Her answer immediately raised my suspicion.
She said she had not passed stool for three days.
Normally, she opens her bowels daily.
That was a major red flag.
At that point, INTESTINAL OBSTRUCTION moved high up on my list of possibilities.
But something was not adding up.
I asked if she had ever had abdominal surgery before.
She said no.
No previous surgeries.
No scars.
Nothing that would commonly explain an intestinal blockage.
So what exactly was obstructing her intestine?
We stabilized her immediately.
She was already dehydrated from repeated vomiting,
so we started IV fluids and medications to control her pain.
Once she was stable enough, we moved her for an ultrasound scan.
The scan was not very revealing.
The only thing we noticed was reduced bowel movement..
suggesting the intestines were not functioning normally.
Still, we could not identify the exact culprit.
So we sent her for an urgent abdominal X-ray.
And that was when we saw it.
Clear as day.
Her Copper T.
Not inside her womb.
Not where it was supposed to be.
It was sitting inside her abdomen.
At that moment, everything made sense.
The Copper T had perforated through the wall of her womb,
migrated into her abdominal cavity,
and triggered internal scar tissue formation. what we call adhesions.
In simple terms, adhesions are like abnormal internal “glue”
that causes organs to stick to each other.
In her case, this scar tissue had wrapped around part of her intestine,
blocking the normal passage of food and waste.
That blockage was why she was vomiting repeatedly.
That blockage was why she had not passed stool.
That blockage was why she was in severe pain.
I turned to her and asked,
“When was the last time you checked for your Copper T thread?”
She paused.
Then said she honestly could not remember.
She said it had been months since she last felt it.
But because she had no symptoms at the time,
she assumed it was still safely in place.
That assumption nearly cost her dearly.
This woman had been using the device for four years.
Somewhere along the line, the thread disappeared.
And instead of coming for a check-up, she ignored it.
By the time the warning signs appeared,
the device had already migrated and caused significant internal damage.
We immediately counseled her and her husband.
We showed them the X-ray.
The Copper T was clearly visible for everyone to see.
There was no room for delay.
She needed urgent surgery.
Her husband consented immediately.
We moved her to the theatre.
When we opened her abdomen,
we found the Copper T hidden beneath loops of intestine.
It had caused multiple adhesions.
Carefully, we separated the stuck portions of bowel
and removed the misplaced device.
Thankfully, the intestine had not died.
We were able to free the obstruction
without needing to remove any part of her bowel.
The relief after surgery was remarkable.
The vomiting stopped.
The pain settled.
Her bowel movements gradually returned.
She stayed on admission for about a week,
and thankfully, she recovered well.
But here is the truth:
She did not end up in theatre because Copper T is unsafe.
She ended up there because a simple warning sign was ignored.
And this is the lesson:
If you use a Copper T (IUCD), checking for the thread is not optional.
It is one of the simplest but most important things you can do.
If you can no longer feel the thread, please do not assume everything is fine.
Come to the hospital.
That missing thread could mean:
The device has fallen out,
It has shifted position,
It has become embedded in the womb,
Or, in rare cases, it has perforated the womb and migrated elsewhere.
And as this woman’s story shows,
in very rare situations, it can even cause intestinal obstruction.
A small habit.
A simple monthly check.
Could save you from major surgery.
Sometimes, the smallest instructions we ignore
become the biggest emergencies we face.
Source: facebook handle: The Women's Doc
