In Kyiv doctors of the Municipal Non-profit Enterprise «Kyiv City city children’s clinical hospital 1» saved a 5-year-old girl who swallowed 17 magnetic balls, the incident was reported by the Department of Health of the Kyiv City State Administration.
According to the agency, during radiological examination the medics saw a continuous chain of magnets in the child’s gastrointestinal tract.
Specialists explain that such incidents are life-threatening: the magnets attract each other through organ walls, compress tissues and impair blood supply, and also increase the risk of mucosal damage, intestinal perforation, and the development of peritonitis.
The child was urgently taken to the operating room, where an endoscopic procedure without an incision was first performed, but the full extent of the problem became clear during the procedure.
«When the child was brought to the operating room, she confessed to us in a childlike way – “I have a surprise inside for you”. And indeed, the “surprise” turned out to be not simple. First, the doctors performed an endoscopic intervention and removed 12 magnets from the stomach without an incision. At the same time, signs of mucosal injury were already recorded at the sites where they pressed. Since, based on the examination results, another five magnets remained in the intestines, the medical team decided to perform an additional procedure. During the operation they were found in the colon», — said pediatric surgeon Boris Rizberg.
To reduce trauma, the team used an intraoperative colonoscopy: the magnets were carefully moved and removed via the natural passage without enlarging the surgical access, ultimately extracting all 17 foreign bodies.
The doctors note that no intestinal perforation, peritonitis, or tissue necrosis was recorded during the surgical intervention, and timely seeking of help made it possible to avoid dangerous complications for the child, the Department of Health of the Kyiv City State Administration reported.
Medics urge parents to be extremely careful with small objects that can get into children’s hands, and at the slightest suspicion of swallowing magnets or any foreign bodies to seek medical help immediately, without waiting for symptoms to appear; they also emphasize that such incidents are not always accidental.
«The boundary between ordinary child curiosity and a behavioral disorder usually runs at the age mark of 6 years. Before this age, a child tasting objects or trying to put them in the nose or ears is most often a manifestation of natural exploration of the environment – the child thus investigates shapes and properties of the world. However, if similar incidents occur in a child older than 6 years, and especially if they are repetitive, this is an alarming sign. In such a case the child requires increased attention from medical professionals. Repeated swallowing of foreign objects at school age may indicate hidden psycho-emotional problems or specific disorders. Therefore I strongly recommend a consultation with a child psychologist or psychiatrist to identify the real reasons for such behavior», — emphasized the head of the department providing psychiatric care for younger children of Kyiv City Children’s Clinical Hospital No. 1 Volodymyr Kharitonov.
Previously we wrote:
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