Background: Intrathoracic gossypiboma is a consequence of retained sponge/swap, gauzoma, muslinoma, textiloma, or cottonoid in the thoracic cavity during surgery. The thoracic cavity is of the rarest place for gossypiboma as these entities most occur after abdominal surgery.
Case presentation: We report a case of intrathoracic gossypiboma that was missed for an extended period of time with no symptoms and was successfully treated with surgical intervention.
Conclusions: The rarity of gossypiboma necessitates a high index of suspicion for correct diagnosis. Gossypiboma is often difficult to diagnose, leading to misdiagnosis and unnecessary interventions. It is important to consider this entity as a diagnosis in any case with an unexplained or unusual presentation during the postoperative period.
Keywords: Gossypiboma; Purulent fistula; Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery.
© 2022. The Author(s).