Indian surgeons remove 29 spoons, 19 toothbrushes, pens from patient’s stomach

Surgeons in Hapur, India, have reportedly removed 29 steel spoons, 19 toothbrushes, and two pens from the stomach of a man in what doctors described as one of the most unusual and shocking medical cases in recent times.

According to a report by the Times of India on September 26, the patient, who hails from Bulandshahr, had been admitted to a de-addiction centre in Ghaziabad a month earlier but was rushed to hospital after complaining of severe abdominal pain.

An ultrasound scan reportedly revealed multiple metallic objects inside his stomach, prompting an emergency operation led by Dr. Shyam Kumar.

The report partly read, “The surgery was as complex as it was rare. An ultrasound scan revealed multiple metallic objects inside the man’s stomach, leaving doctors with no choice but to operate immediately.

“The team had to carefully remove the items one by one to prevent injury to vital organs.

“Dr Shyam Kumar described the moment as “shocking” because of the sheer number of items. Yet, despite the risks, the operation was successful.”

The patient has reportedly been discharged and is now stable and recovering.

He was said to have later told doctors that he had felt mistreated and deprived of food at the rehabilitation centre, which left him frustrated and helpless.

“He said he had felt mistreated and deprived of food at the de-addiction centre, which left him angry and helpless. In his agitation, he began swallowing objects to harm himself, a desperate act of self-injury,” the report read.

Hindustan Times reports that in a similar case from 2022, 63 spoons were recovered from the stomach of a patient in UP’s Muzaffarnagar.

The man identified as Vijay was reportedly a drug addict who had been admitted to a de-addiction centre, where he had been eating spoons for a year.

He had also reported back in 2019 that a team of doctors in Himachal Pradesh’s Mandi recovered spoons, screwdrivers, toothbrushes, a kitchen knife and a door latch from the stomach of a man suffering from a major mental disorder.