The Tumbling Bullet: Subacute Intestinal Obstruction due to a Retained Bullet

A 29-year-old female presented with multiple gunshot wounds to the back and bilateral lower extremities. The patient underwent an exploratory laparotomy with small-bowel resection of two segments with primary stapled anastomosis and partial nephrectomy. The postoperative course showed prolonged intermittent bowel obstruction secondary to the bullet, which lodged in the distal ileum. The patient eventually passed the bullet; it, however, led to a delay in recovery.