13-year-old boy forced to have part of his bowels removed after swallowing up to 100 magnets

A 13-year-old boy had to have part of his bowel removed after he swallowed hundreds of magnets.

The child, from New Zealand, had ingested over 100 high-power magnets, believed to have been purchased from online shopping site Temu, according to a report in the New Zealand Medical Journal on Friday (October 24).

After suffering from abdominal pain for four days, the teenager was admitted to Tauranga Hospital, where he told doctors that he had swallowed the magnets about a week earlier.

Imaging scans revealed four chains of tiny magnets, which were all 'in separate parts of bowel' but 'adhered together due to magnetic forces'.

The presence of the magnets within the bowel caused a health condition called 'pressure necrosis', in which tissues die due to prolonged pressure that compresses blood vessels and cuts off the oxygen supply.

The high-power magnets had fused together inside his gut (New Zealand Medical Journal)

Emergency surgery was required to remove the magnets as well as various sections of the bowel that were damaged.

The boy spent eight days in hospital recovering from the ordeal, with the report explaining: "Ingestion of multiple magnets can have serious consequences, including pressure necrosis, perforation, obstruction, fistula and sepsis.

"Given the majority are managed with surgical intervention, this can lead to further complications later in life, including adhesional bowel obstruction, abdominal hernia and chronic pain.

"Preventative strategies are important to reduce risk of harm to paediatric patients."

Both Australia and New Zealand banned small, high-powered magnets back in 2013 due to the dangers of swallowing them.

However, it can be difficult to regulate their sale online, as the report said: "Accessibility to high-power magnets is a rising concern for our paediatric population, which may be due to the ability to purchase from online marketplaces at inexpensive prices."

The boy had to have part of his bowel removed (New Zealand Medical Journal)

A UK study found that 68 per cent of patients who had swallowed a magnet were asymptomatic, while the rest mainly experienced abdominal pain and vomiting.

In a statement to The New York Post, a Temu spokesperson said: “We are sorry to learn about the reported incident and wish the boy a full and speedy recovery.

“At this stage, we have not been able to confirm whether the magnets involved were purchased through Temu or identify the specific product listing.

“Our teams are reviewing relevant listings to ensure full compliance with local safety requirements.

“Any products found to be non-compliant will be removed, and we will take firm action against any sellers found to have breached our platform rules or local regulations.”

LADbible Group has also reached out to Temu for further comment.

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