Spontaneous passage of ingested glass shard in a child: a report of successful conservative care

Background. Sharp foreign body ingestion in children is uncommon but carries significant risk of gastrointestinal bleeding, obstruction, and perforation. Glass fragments, in particular, pose diagnostic and management challenges due to variable radiopacity and unpredictable migration. Case presentation. A three-year-old boy presented after swallowing a glass shard from a broken drinking glass. He remained asymptomatic with unremarkable physical examination and laboratory results. Plain abdominal radiography did not clearly identify the foreign body. CT imaging demonstrated a triangular radiopaque fragment within the gastric antrum. Esophagogastroduodenoscopy revealed esophageal erosion but failed to locate the glass shard. Given the benign clinical status, conservative management was initiated, including high-fiber diet, laxatives, mobilization, and close observation. On day three, the glass shard passed spontaneously in the stool without any complication. Conclusion. This case demonstrates that carefully selected pediatric patients with sharp glass ingestion may be safely managed conservatively under vigilant monitoring and readiness for surgical intervention.