Recently, Uncle Lai went to the hospital due to gastrointestinal discomfort and was diagnosed with intestinal obstruction. The cause of his condition turned out to be a common ingredient—wood ear mushrooms.
It turned out that Uncle Lai did not chew the wood ear mushrooms thoroughly, and after entering his stomach, their volume continued to expand, leading to intestinal obstruction. The attending doctor told the family: "Undigested wood ear mushrooms will continue to expand in volume after being swallowed. A large volume of them cannot pass through the ileocecal valve, forming an acute intestinal obstruction."
The doctor pointed out that intestinal obstruction is a common disease in general surgery. Acute intestinal obstruction is often caused by overeating and indigestion. It is worth noting that acute intestinal obstruction can be easily misdiagnosed as intestinal volvulus, appendicitis, etc., so patients must seek diagnosis and treatment at a regular hospital. Once diagnosed with intestinal obstruction, surgery should be performed immediately in most cases to remove the obstruction as soon as possible, in order to restore the normal function of the intestine. If the timing is delayed, it may lead to complications such as intestinal necrosis, acute peritonitis, and toxic shock, and even be life-threatening.
Clinically, it is not uncommon for the elderly to develop intestinal obstruction from improper consumption of wood ear mushrooms. There are also cases of hospitalization and surgery due to improper consumption of enoki mushrooms or other mushrooms. Doctors recommend that such foods must be cooked thoroughly and chewed completely before swallowing. More importantly, one should not eat too much at once, especially children and the elderly.