Turkish doctor reveals bizarre collection of accidentally swallowed items by people
SİVAS – Anadolu Agency
A Turkish doctor in the Central Anatolian province of Sivas has been collecting strange items, which people swallowed accidentally.
The items taken out from the stomachs and windpipes of people, include pins, nails, coins, pen caps and buttons.
“Adults can accidentally swallow different things like children, too,” said Ekber Şahin, a doctor from Sivas Cumhuriyet University hospital, on Jan. 13.
When asked the most shocking case of his life, Şahin said, “Someone was cleaning his throat with a nail, which he swallowed, and we took it out. That was the most interesting case of my life.”
Swallowing unwanted items is mostly seen in children between the ages of 1 and 3, Şahin noted.
“Kids take everything to their mouths wishing to swallow,” Şahin said, warning the adults about their children.
“Eating chickpeas, hazelnuts and peanuts directly without chewing them can harm children. Sometimes they swallow them, and without any signs, parents do not take them to the doctor. And in years, these can cause problems,” said the professor.
“Women try to put their headscarfs while holding pins on their lips. And while they laugh or take a breath, they can accidentally swallow the pins,” Şahin said.
“Swallowing something can be seen at any age. In middle-aged people accidentally swallowing of headscarf pins is mostly seen. There have also been cases of some elderly people who accidently swallowed their dental prosthesis.”
When asked if the numbers of aspiration cases increased during the pandemic, Şahin said, “No, on the contrary, the numbers have fallen.”
Noting that children spend all of their time near the family, Şahin said, “As parents take care of their kids all the time, the number of kids swallowing things have decreased. Parents are cautious about them. It has been exactly 10 months and there is a huge decrease in the aspiration cases.”
