Rectal foreign bodies are large foreign items found in the rectum that can be assumed to have been inserted through the anus, rather than reaching the rectum via the mouth and gastrointestinal tract. Smaller, ingested foreign bodies, such as bones eaten with food, can sometimes be found stuck in the rectum upon x-ray.
Rectal foreign bodies, and amateur attempts to remove them, can result in perforation of the bowel, which is a life-threatening medical emergency. Medical literature covers examples of items retrieved from patients' rectums. Rectal foreign objects are also the subject of a number of urban legends.
Famous quotes containing the words foreign body, foreign and/or body:
“Genius resembles a bell; in order to ring it must be suspended into pure air, and when a foreign body touches it, its joyful tone is silenced.”
—Franz Grillparzer (1791–1872)
“the young men who watch us from the curbs:
They hold the glaze of wonder in their stare
Our crooked backs, hands fetid as old herbs,
The tallow eyes, wax face, the foreign hair!”
—Allen Tate (1899–1979)
“Her body calculated to a millimeter to suggest a bud yet guarantee a flower.”
—F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896–1940)