AIIMS Delhi: Doctors of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) have successfully removed the needle stuck in the left lung of a seven-year-old child with the help of a magnet. The hospital gave this information on Saturday. The hospital said that the team of the Pediatric Surgery Department, through a complex endoscopic procedure, removed the four centimeter needle lodged inside the lung. The child was admitted to AIIMS on Wednesday in a critical condition after complaining of hemoptysis (bleeding with cough).
Long needle of sewing machine stuck in the lung
Dr. Vishesh Jain, Additional Professor, Department of Pediatric Surgery, told PTI that radiological examination revealed that a long needle of a sewing machine was stuck in the child’s left lung. Dr. Jain, through an acquaintance, made arrangements to buy the magnet from Chandni Chowk market the same evening. “The magnet, four millimeters wide and 1.5 millimeters thick, was the perfect tool for this task,” Jain said.
Explaining the complexities of the procedure, Dr Devendra Kumar Yadav, additional professor, department of pediatric surgery, said that the needle was embedded so deep inside the lung that conventional methods would have proved almost ineffective. He said the team of doctors held extensive discussions with the aim of finding innovative solutions to remove the needle safely and effectively. Dr. Jain said, “The primary objective was to guide the magnet to the location of the needle while avoiding any risk to the trachea. The team simply designed a special device in which the magnets were securely attached using a rubber band and thread.
According to Dr. Yadav, the team started endoscopy of the trachea to find the location of the needle within the left lung and the team found only the tip of the needle, which was stuck deep within the lung. Dr. Jain said that with the help of this magnet device the needle was successfully removed. According to AIIMS, the family could not provide any information about how the needle reached the child’s lungs.