Shock as doctors find 13 sewing needles in 10-month-old baby

Doctors at Thika Level 5 Hospital successfully removed 13 sewing needles from a 10-month-old baby’s body and left one for later.

31-year-old Jacinta Ndunge, the baby’s mother said she discovered the needles when they prickled her as she applied jelly on her baby.

Jacinta, however, has no idea how the needle got there in the first place.

The baby had been admitted for Pneumonia but after Jacinta alerted the doctors, an x-ray showed she had 14 needles. This made the doctors arrange for an urgent surgery where they successfully extracted 13 of the needles.

The remaining one was left due to the risk it posed with its position in the hip bone. Doctors said it will need special treatment to avoid putting the baby’s life in more danger.

Confirming the case Kiambu County Chief Officer in charge of Health Andrew Toro said that the remaining needle was lodged too deep inside one of the baby’s bones.

“Removing an object like that from the child’s body is dangerous and could damage blood vessels, nerves, trigger infections and could even cause death,” he said.