Bezoar. From a miraculous healer to a real disease

Bezoar is a relatively rare digestive condition in daily practice. Often asymptomatic, it represents a major diagnostic challenge, generally discovered incidentally during a complication. In the wide differential range of etiologic processes underlying bowel obstruction, bezoar is a little-known cause. As the clinical and radiological picture can be quite atypical and difficult to interpret, it is often poorly identified in the preoperative period. Below, we report the specific case of an acute mechanical bowel obstruction in a septuagenarian adult involving the impaction of a bezoar. Initially misdiagnosed as secondary to postoperative adhesion, the correct diagnosis was made ex abrupto during emergency surgery. This case highlights the difficulties encountered in identifying the pathology. Through this informative report, we aim to reinforce several important lessons for clinical practice.