For three long years, she visited multiple doctors, who prescribed pain medication but failed to identify the root cause.
* Dr. Mittal and his team planned a highly complex procedure
* During the surgery, they used a specialised C-Arm imaging device
* It precisely located the needle amid the muscle tissue
Doctors at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital in Delhi have successfully removed a sewing needle lodged deep in a woman’s buttock muscle for over three years.
The patient had been living with increasing discomfort and pain after accidentally falling on the needle in 2021.
The incident occurred one afternoon when the patient, while sewing, placed the needle on the bed momentarily. After getting up to attend to something, she slipped and fell back onto the bed, feeling a sharp pain. Half of the needle had broken off, and despite days of searching, the missing piece could not be found.
“I was convinced it had fallen out somewhere in the room,” the patient recalled. “But the discomfort in my buttock kept increasing over the years.”
For three long years, she visited multiple doctors, who prescribed pain medication but failed to identify the root cause. It was only after a recent X-ray that the shocking discovery was made – the ‘lost’ needle had been lodged deep in her muscle all along.
Determined to have it removed, she consulted several surgeons, but they all refused, citing the needle’s depth and the risk of bleeding from nearby nerves. She finally met Dr. Tarun Mittal, Senior Consultant in the Department of General Surgery at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital.
After careful evaluation and pre-operative imaging, Dr. Mittal and his team planned a highly complex procedure. During the surgery, they used a specialised C-Arm imaging device to precisely locate the needle amid the muscle tissue.
“It was a challenging task,” said Dr. Mittal. “Multiple intraoperative X-rays were required to pinpoint the needle’s location accurately.”
After meticulous dissection, the team successfully extracted the needle in one piece, without breaking it – a remarkable feat considering the risks involved.
The successful surgery, performed by Dr. Mittal, Dr. Ashish Dey, Dr. Anmol Ahuja, Dr. Tanushree, and Dr. Karthik, has brought immense relief to the patient after years of discomfort and uncertainty.
“I’m grateful to the doctors for their skill and perseverance,” she expressed. “After three years, the needle is finally out, and my ordeal is over.”