Date seeds: an unusual cause of distal colonic obstruction

A 72 year old woman presented with clinical signs and symptoms ofcolonic obstruction. Plain radiographs of the abdomen showed features of distal colo-rectal obstruction, and a limited barium enema examination demonstrated multiple, oval filling defects in the recto-sigmoid. A cleansing enema under general anaesthesia confirmed impacted date seeds which were extracted, and the patient made an uneventful recovery