A Florida teenager had parts of her large intestines and appendix removed after swallowing rare-earth magnets, according to media reports
Fourteen-year-old Christin Rivas swallowed the magnets by accident when she was at school.
"I was going to the bathroom and I put them in my mouth because I didn't want to put them on the floor," Rivas told ABC News. "I wasn't quite thinking. The kid on the other side said something that made laugh and swallow them."
Rare-earth magnets are incredibly strong, permanent magnets made from rare metals. More powerful than other magnets, they can be found in jewelry, computer hard drives and are often used to play with, ABC News reported.
According to the Centers for Disease Control rare earth magnets "pose unique health hazards to children." If swallowed parts of the stomach can get stuck between the magnets, Dr. Tejas Mehta told ABC News. It can also cause the small intestine to twist, which can then lead to breakage and infection. Still, the magnets are available for sale.
But many doctors, however, aren't aware of how dangerous they are. When Rivas' mother brought her to the emergency room, they told her wait until the magnets go through her system. Before that, Rivas' mother researched online how dangerous they were and took her to another hospital, ABC News reported.
Doctors were at first unsuccessful in removing the magnets. Laxatives did not work, and by the third day they were stuck at the end of Rivas' small intestine, ABC News reported. Doctors had to then surgically remove the magnets. Besides Rivas, the CDC reports 19 other cases where the swallowing of the magnets required gastrointestinal surgery. One case resulted in death.
The 7th grader is doing well after a five-day hospital say, ABC News reported.
"Don't even think about touching them or buying them," Rivas told the Orlando Sentinel. "I messed up my intestines. I worry about that down the road."
