INDEPENDENT UK
Doctors say ‘ingestion of magnetic beads is a rare cause of intestinal obstruction in children’
A four-year-old boy from Nigeria, who had been complaining of intense pain, had swallowed a magnetic bracelet that had to be surgically removed.
According to an alarming case study published in the Journal of Pediatric Surgery in its February 2023 issue – to be released next month – the boy had swallowed multiple magnetic beads and had been experiencing pain for two days before they were removed.
The doctors state that the child “presented with features initially mimicking acute appendicitis and later intestinal obstruction. He initially had an open appendicectomy which did not improve the clinical condition”.
They report that “after further evaluation, he later had laparotomy with the retrieval of ingested beads and repair of enteric perforations”.
The doctors – Muslimat A Alada, Michael E Aghahowa, Abdulrasheed A Nasir, and Kenneth O Amaechi who reported the case – said that “accidental ingestion of magnetic beads is a common problem among children worldwide” and that “despite its increasing prevalence, there is usually inaccurate diagnosis and management, which often results in severe morbidity in patients”.
