By Shumaila Aslam
Bureau Chief Pakistan
Scandinavian News Agency
Finland
Doctors in New Zealand successfully removed nearly 100 high-powered magnets from a 13-year-old boy’s intestines after he accidentally swallowed them, hospital officials confirmed on Friday.
According to a report published in the New Zealand Medical Journal, the teenager began suffering from severe abdominal pain four days after ingesting the magnets, which he had purchased online through Temu, a popular e-commerce platform.
The boy was admitted to Tauranga Hospital on the country’s North Island, where surgeons performed emergency surgery to extract the magnets and remove damaged tissue from his intestines.
Doctors said the magnets, measuring 5x2mm each, were made of neodymium — a substance known for its powerful magnetic pull. When swallowed, such magnets can attract each other through the walls of the intestines, causing life-threatening internal injuries.
The report noted that high-powered magnets have been banned in New Zealand since 2013, yet similar products continue to appear on online marketplaces.
Health officials have urged parents to remain vigilant and to immediately seek medical attention if children ingest foreign objects.
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