Swallowed opium packets: CT diagnosis.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study is to report our experience in diagnosis of the opium body packers with CT scan.

MATERIALS AND

METHODS

For 12 cases who confessed to opium packet ingestion, we did an abdominal and pelvic CT scan without contrast and evaluated the presence, number and location of opium packets and also measured the density of packets in Hounsfield unit (HU).

RESULTS

Mean age of our cases was 28.2 +/- 5.9 years (ranging 17-35 years). Eleven (91.6%) patients were male and only one case was female. In all patients, the packets were visualized in gastrointestinal (GI) lumen by CT scan. The mean of minimum HU was 163.8 +/- 19.6 and its maximum was 205.3 +/- 32.8. We had mortality in an 18-year-old female due to opium overdose.

CONCLUSION

CT scan could be a suitable imaging modality in identifying opium packets, similar to that reported for cocaine and heroin.