Answer
From question on page 1103
Internal concealment of narcotics wrapped in plastic or latex is referred to as “body packing”. Professional methods of wrapping involve several layers of latex and an outer wax coating. Each of these packets usually contains approximately 8–10 g of drug. Ingested packets can usually be seen radiographically and the use of computer tomography may be helpful, although false negative scans have been reported. Rupture and leakage of the contents, especially cocaine, can be fatal. Hence the American Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy guidelines for management of ingested foreign bodies suggest that no attempt should be made to remove drug packets endoscopically because of the risk of rupture, and surgical intervention is indicated for failure of the packets to progress, signs of intestinal obstruction, or suspected rupture. In adults, rounded objects greater than 2.5 cm maximum diameter are unlikely to pass through the pylorus, hence surgical intervention, either laparoscopic or by laparotomy, may be needed.
In our case, the packet had not passed out of the patient's stomach for more than 24 hours after ingestion and therefore removal seemed necessary. To avoid the patient having a laparotomy, we elected to carefully remove the packet endoscopically, using an ERCP stone removal basket. The procedure was completed without complication and after an overnight stay the patient was discharged. The packet was consistent with 17 tablets of buprinorphine wrapped in multiple layers of plastic clingfilm.