This is the baby boy who tore six holes in his stomach and intestines after accidentally swallowing over a dozen magnetic bead toys known as Buckyballs.
The 16-month-old tot from the county of Qingtian, which is in Lishui in East China’s Zhejiang Province, was found with no fewer than 14 magnetic balls in his bowels.
His mother, Ms Dai, brought him to see local doctors after he complained of stomach pain.
The mum said doctors suspected her son’s discomfort was caused by undigested food.
However, after two days of ineffective treatment, he was referred to the larger Lishui Central Hospital on 26th February.
Ms Dai said: “We only knew about the magnetic balls when we saw the CT scans.”
Zheng Rui, the out-patient clinic’s paediatrician, said scans clearly showed a series of metallic objects inside the boy’s digestive system.
After he suspected they were Buckyball toys, Ms Chen said her son likely swallowed them while playing with the older children living next door.
Zhang Heng, the hospital’s head paediatric surgeon, scheduled an emergency surgery for the tot.
The magnetic beads, which had torn holes in the boy’s stomach and intestines while trying to stick together inside his body, were retrieved after two hours.
Doctor Zhang said: “It was quite serious because he had swallowed 14 magnetic balls.
“Two were in his stomach, two were in his large intestine, and the remaining 10 were in his small intestine.
“Because it had been some time since he swallowed it, his stomach, small and large intestines were perforated in six places.
“As a result, there was serious contamination and infection inside his abdominal cavity.”
The boy is in stable condition after his surgery but is continuing his recovery in paediatric intensive care.
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Story By: John Feng, Sub-Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Asia Wire Report
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