Necessity of a Good Surgical History: Detection of a Gossypiboma

Any patient with a history of previous surgery is at risk for having a gossypiboma, a retained surgical sponge (RSS). An instrument or sponge left in a patient after surgery is a ubiquitous medical error and continues to be a patient safety and surgical quality issue. The incidence of RSSs, various clinical presentations, imaging characteristics, management of clinical consequences, cost, and legal ramifications are reviewed. The nurse practitioner plays an important role in obtaining a thorough surgical history and should consider an RSS in the differential diagnosis of any postsurgical patient with an unresolved or unusual complaint.