Abstract:

BACKGRAUND: Foreign body (FB) ingestion is a common accident in children. In recent years, the number of patients presenting with magnetic foreign body ingestion has increased due to the production of toys from magnetic foreign bodies. In this study, we investigated the treatment algorithm in patients with multiple magnetic FB ingestion, together with the literature studies conducted in recent years. We aimed to share the common result by evaluating the treatment algorithm of different studies. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients treated for magnetic foreign body ingestion in our clinic between January 2015 and December 2022 were retrospectively analyzed. The demographic data of the patients, the time of swallowing FB, the time of admission, the number of times they swallowed, the surgical notes, and the length of hospital stay were recorded. RESULTS: In seven years, 13 patients were treated for magnetic FB ingestion. There were seven male and six female patients. The mean age was 5.3 ± 4.2 years. Five patients swallowed a single magnetic FB, one of them was removed from the esophagus by endoscopy, and four of them were spontaneously removed from the gastrointestinal tract. Three of the eight patients who ingested multiple magnetic FB had spontaneous gastrointestinal tract removal of the FB. FBs were removed by laparotomy in five patients, two of whom was emergency. CONCLUSION: Ingestion of a single magnetic object occurs without the need for intervention, such as an isolated foreign body, without causing any damage to my gastrointestinal tract. Ischemia, necrosis, perforation and even strangulation can be seen due to sandwich compression in most patients who swallow multiple magnetic foreign bodies. In rare cases, spontaneous gastrointestinal release is possible in multiple magnetic FB ingestion. In case of multiple magnetic FB ingestion, patients who are asymptomatic can be followed. Successful results are obtained with more non-invasive treatment by applying timely and correct procedures.

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