An unusual cause of dyspepsia due to a retained epicardial pacing wire

Temporary epicardial pacing wire (TEPW) are fre- quently inserted in cardiac surgery. Although overall morbidity related to TEPW is low, complications related to the insertion, utilization, retrieval, and migration of these wires have been reported in the literature (1). In this report, we describe a case of gastric migration of a TEPW, which caused dyspeptic symptoms. A 74-year-old man was admitted to our gastroen- terology clinic for evaluation of worsening dyspeptic symptoms. Over the previous four months, he had suf- fered from continuous epigastric burning and pain. The patient had undergone coronary bypass grafting one year prior to the admission. Findings on abdominal exa- mination were non-specific. On upper gastrointestinal endoscopy, a blue wire was identified that had penetrated the distal anterior wall of the gastric corpus (Figure 1). Retrieval of the foreign body was attempted but failed. Thoracic and abdominal computed tomography showed the wire, which originated from the right ventricle, passing through the sternocostal triangle, entering the abdomen, and penetrating the gastric wall (Figure 2). Consultation with cardiovascular surgery confirmed this wire to be a TEPW, which was cut at the surface of the skin after the bypass procedure. Although surgical inter- vention was planned, the patient did not provide consent for surgery.