Teen Swallows 100 Magnets - Doctors Forced To Remove Part Of His Bowel

A 13-year-old boy in New Zealand required emergency surgery after swallowing nearly 100 small, high-powered magnets. According to a case report, the teenager arrived at Tauranga Hospital with abdominal pain and initially admitted to ingesting about 100 neodymium magnets a week earlier. However, scans later revealed the number was much higher.

An X-ray showed four chains of magnets spread across different parts of his digestive system. Once inside his body, the magnets pulled together through sections of his bowel, cutting off blood flow and causing pressure necrosis-areas where tissue starts dying due to a lack of oxygen, according to report.

During surgery, doctors discovered magnet chains in the small intestine and caecum and were forced to remove parts of the damaged bowel. Thankfully, the boy made a good recovery and was discharged from the hospital eight days later.

Doctors warn that such incidents can be life-threatening and urge parents to keep magnetic toys away from children, especially powerful neodymium magnets, which can cause serious internal damage.The case study was published in the New Zealand Medical Journal.

"As this case study shows, ingesting small high-powered magnets is life-threatening," says commercial law researcher Alex Sims from the University of Auckland. "Small high-power magnets have been marketed and sold as fun toys for adults and children when they are sold in sets, as they can be used to make different shapes and also be used as fidget toys. Unfortunately, they often come as brightly colored small balls, making them attractive for children to swallow."

The report did not explain why the teenager swallowed the magnets. However, New Zealand authorities have recently warned about a troubling social media trend where children use small magnets to mimic tongue, nose, or lip piercings. These magnets can be easily and accidentally swallowed, posing serious health risks.