Doctors in Arunachal Pradesh's Pasighat recently removed a toothbrush from a man's stomach after he accidentally swallowed it while brushing his teeth. The doctors, fearing further delay could worsen the patient's condition within 24 hours of the incident. A minor surgery was conducted to remove the brush.
A report in Arunachal 24 quoted a doctor as saying that it took about 30- 35 minutes to operate upon him and take the toothbrush out from his abdomen.
A resident of Roing Lower Dibang Valley, the 39-year-old man said he was trying to clean the tooth cavities when the brush slipped off his hand and he swallowed it.
His family members then rushed him to a local clinic which then referred him to the Bakin Pertin General Hospital where doctors conducted an X-ray but could not locate the toothbrush in the man's oesophagus.
Another surgeon said that the brush must have entered the stomach and suggested the patient be admitted to hospital for a laparotomy test. Surprisingly, the patient had only been feeling minor discomfort due to the accident.
Dr Bomni Tayeng, who assisted in the surgery said that he was also surprised how someone could swallow a whole toothbrush. The patient's condition is said to be stable and was discharged from the hospital later.
This is not the first time such an incident has happened. Doctors from a southern Chinese hospital had last year removed a 14-centimetre-long toothbrush from a man's intestines he had swallowed 20 years ago in a bid to die by suicide.