Surgery that saved baby with 14 needles in the buttocks from pain

X Ray of Thika baby with needles

• A surgeon who led a team of three in removing 13 pins lodged in the buttocks of a 10-month-old baby, has lifted the lid on what it took to save the toddler. 
• Mwea Macharia, a general surgeon at Thika Level Five Hospital, yesterday recounted how he and two other doctors carried out the five-hour surgery.

Dr Macharia told The Standard they first learnt of the toddler's condition from a paediatrician who had recommended further examination.

A doctor who was treating the baby for pneumonia noticed the presence of some sharp objects in her buttocks and notified the paediatrician who in turn called Macharia.