An 8-year-old boy swallowed magnets — and was saved from a complex surgery
Gilad was playing in his room when, in a moment of boredom, he put three small magnets in his mouth and swallowed them. His mother was convinced they would pass naturally, but decided to consult with their family doctor, who instructed her to go to the emergency room immediately. An X-ray revealed that the magnets had already attached to each other inside his body, and he was rushed for an urgent gastroscopy procedure.
It started in a moment of boredom: 8-year-old Gilad was playing in his room with a magnetic game and, as a silly act, put three small magnets in his mouth and swallowed them. Immediately afterwards, he went to his father and told him what happened, and the father rushed to update his mother, Einat. At first, Einat did not suspect that this was an incident requiring urgent evacuation. "I thought it was like any small thing that children sometimes swallow, that it would pass through the digestive system and eventually come out naturally," she recalls.
Just to be safe, she decided to call and consult with Dr. Tili Fisher-Yosef, a family medicine specialist at Maccabi Healthcare Services in Kfar Yona. Already at the beginning of the conversation, Einat understood that the doctor assessed the severity of the case differently. Dr. Fisher-Yosef asked how many magnets the child swallowed and what their size was, and after receiving her answer, urged the family to travel urgently to the emergency room. "During the conversation, I sent her pictures of the swallowed magnets," the mother says. Tili explained that three magnets swallowed together can stick to each other and create complications in the intestine, which can only be treated through a complex surgery. "I understood that we must reach the emergency room quickly, before the magnets move into the intestine."
Following Dr. Fisher-Yosef's guidance, Gilad was rushed to Meir Hospital in Kfar Saba. In an X-ray performed on him, the three magnets were clearly visible, already attached to each other inside his body. "Like three soldiers," Einat described it. The medical team acted without delay. A specialist doctor was called from his home, and Gilad was admitted for an urgent gastroscopy procedure, during which the doctors managed to reach the magnets and remove all three safely. The doctors clarified to his mother that the quick response and arriving on time were what allowed the magnets to be removed in this way. If they had continued to move down the digestive system, the risk of severe damage to the intestine would have increased significantly, and the treatment could have become complex and surgical.
Throughout the event, Gilad remained calm. After waking up from the procedure and understanding the magnitude of the danger, he turned to his mother and said: "Now I understand why you always tell me not to put things in my mouth."
"The very fact that a child can feel excellent after swallowing magnets can mislead parents and cause them to underestimate the severity of the event," explains Dr. Fisher-Yosef. Swallowing several magnets is much more complex and dangerous than swallowing other foreign objects. The magnets can be pulled towards each other with force while moving through the digestive system, even when the intestinal wall separates them. The attachment blocks the blood supply, exerts pressure on the tissue, and can cause a perforation in the intestine and severe complications. According to her, even the absence of symptoms does not indicate that the danger has passed. Even if the child is calm, has no pain, and there is no external sign that something is wrong, one must never wait or wait for the magnets to come out on their own. One must receive immediate medical guidance. In this case, Einat did exactly the right thing and consulted. A short conversation, which sometimes seems simple or unnecessary, can completely change the course of treatment and prevent complications.
"We are at the peak of the summer vacation and the children spend a lot of time at home and are looking for employment," concludes Einat. "It is very easy to say 'it will be fine' or assume that it will pass on its own, but my big lesson from the event is that there is no risk worth taking when it comes to our children. One consultation with the family doctor saved Gilad from severe complications and a complex surgery. I call on all parents: if there is a doubt, there is no doubt. Do not hesitate to consult and check, even if it seems like a minor event to you."
