Something to think about the next time you're asked if you have anything to declare. (http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/02/05/immigration_search/)


US immigration cavity search ends in agony

US immigration officials insisted the sufferer of an anal infection remove a small piece of medical thread which was being used by doctors to treat the condition. The man required treatment under general anaesthetic as a result.

The man had an anal fistula, which is a painful channel that can develop deep into the anus, caused by infection or digestive conditions such as Crohn's disease. More details, if absolutely necessary, from NHS Direct here.

Arriving on holiday in New York in August last year, the unnamed 48-year-old was interrogated and searched by immigration officers, according to a letter appearing in medical journal The Lancet. The rectal examination discovered a device called a seton, which doctors in the UK had inserted into the fistula to help control long-term infection.

The seton was made of a blue braided medical suture material knotted and passed into the hole where the fistula surfaced. After one baffled immigration officer pulled "very hard" on the seton, the patient was given the choice by the baffled immigration officers of either getting on the next plane home, or submitting himself to a procedure to have it removed.

Happily, as The Lancet's correspondent notes, the curious immigration officer yanking the seton did not damage "the anal sphincter muscles encircled by it".

The seton was duly removed by an airport doctor, who claimed to have no idea what it was. The man now requires treatment under general anaesthetic to have a replacement inserted.

The letter writer concludes by advising seton patients to carry a letter from their doctor when travelling "to the USA or any other country where they are likely to be searched in this manner".

Here's the actual letter:

http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140673607601913/fulltext


I wish to bring to your attention difficulties one of my patients recently encountered when entering the USA. He is a 48-year-old man with a fistula-in-ano managed with a long-term seton to control perianal sepsis.

A seton consists of a length of suture material knotted to form a loop which lies in the fistula track. It passes through the fistula, out of the external opening beside the anus, into the anus, and re-enters the fistula through the internal opening. Various different materials can be used; in this case the seton was made of a turquoise braided synthetic suture. Many fistulas are treated with setons in the short term, and, in those that are high or associated with Crohn's disease, this management can be long-term.

On arrival in New York in August, 2006, for a holiday, the patient was interrogated by immigration officials, then examined and searched. The presence of the seton gave rise to much concern, I assume because of a suspicion that a drug package or terrorist weapon was in some way attached to it. A rectal examination was done, during which the examining official pulled very hard on the seton, causing severe pain, but fortunately not damaging the anal sphincter muscles encircled by it.

The patient was refused entry into the country unless the seton was removed. Given the somewhat stark choice, he chose removal of the seton, which was done by a doctor at the airport who claimed never to have come across one before. The patient now requires an examination under general anaesthetic to insert a replacement.

I thought I should highlight this rather bizarre manifestation of “homeland security” because I suspect that it might become a more frequent problem. I suggest that any patient with a seton who is planning to travel to the USA or any other country where they are likely to be searched in this manner should carry a letter from their specialist explaining the nature of their condition and treatment.

Is it just me, or is this patient just unbelievably fucking stupid to risk his health having doctors who admittedly don't know what they're doing tugging at his man-made ass plumbing for a fucking vacation? I'd have demanded to speak to someone from the British embassy. And whoever that airport doctor is should have their license revoked for not asking around, assuming that the patient was able to communicate what their medical condition was.

The seton was duly removed by an airport doctor, who claimed to have no idea what it was. The man now requires treatment under general anaesthetic to have a replacement inserted.

Perhaps if you are an airport doctor you should be aware of procedures done to fix ass problems.

Defending the nation is a dirty job.

Defending the nation is a dirty job.

Which is why we have to fight them over there, so we don't have to fight them over here... in the ass.

This "security" thing is getting a bit over the edge when your ass isn't even safe. My ass is my last frontier, man. I've had doctors prodding my ears, nose, and throat all my life. Leave my ass alone. Besides, I'm getting to the age when the phrase "rubber glove' takes on a new and imprtant meaning.
I'm not going to fly to England just to get a practice run.

I don't get this either. Don't they have x-ray methods for check an ass or something? You would see a bag of drugs up there or something. Haven't we advanced beyond ripping stiches out to dig into someone's ass?

Yeah, it's called drug sniffing dogs... in the ass.