Chinese Man Swallows Spoon While Drunk, Believes It Was A Dream For 6 Months

A 15-cm spoon has been found in the stomach of a Chinese man who accidentally swallowed it while being drunk in Thailand. The spoon had been lodged in the stomach of the 29-year-old man, identified as Yang, for almost six months without him realising it. It was during a recent medical check that it was revealed Mr Yang was harbouring a piece of cutlery.

Mr Yang visited the Zhongshan Hospital in Shanghai complaining of stomach discomfort and suspecting he might have swallowed plastic while eating takeaway. However, doctors conducting the procedure found a ceramic coffee spoon wedged in his duodenum.

After being told of the finding, Mr Yang realised his experience in Thailand back in January, was not a figment of imagination. While on a boozy bender in the Southeast nation, Mr Yang attempted to use a coffee spoon in the hotel room to induce vomiting.

"The ceramic spoon was inadvertently pulled from his hand by a force in his throat and slid into his stomach. Following this, he experienced an alcoholic blackout," a report in South China Morning Post stated.

After regaining consciousness the next day, Mr Yang believed he had merely dreamed about swallowing the spoon and went about his business as usual. For the next six months after returning to Shanghai, he continued to work out, feeling no significant issues.

He underwent endoscopic surgery on June 18, with the initial attempt failing due to the slippery nature of the spoon. Afterwards, a change in strategy helped the doctors successfully retrieve the spoon as Mr Yang was discharged.

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Previous instance

Earlier this month, doctors conducted an 80-minute operation to remove a 17-cm toothbrush from the intestine of a 64-year-old man, where it had been stuck for 52 years. The man, identified as Yang, said he remembered swallowing the toothbrush at the age of 12 but was too scared to tell his parents about it.

Mr Yang believed that the toothbrush would dissolve on its own and went about his life normally until he developed severe stomach pain. As per medical experts, a toothbrush in the intestine could move around and puncture the inner tissue, causing intestinal perforation that could be fatal. In Mr Yang's case, the toothbrush was fortunately lodged in a crook of the intestine and barely moved for decades.