A 32-year-old man from Wenzhou, China, sought medical attention for common abdominal pain. However, what doctors discovered during the examination shocked them. Inside the patient’s stomach, they found a mercury thermometer. Even more surprising, the man had lived with the object for decades.
It turned out he had swallowed the thermometer at age 12. At the time, he was frightened and did not tell anyone. Since he experienced no symptoms, the incident was forgotten for many years.
Doctors were concerned about his condition. The sharp tip of the thermometer had been pressing against the intestinal wall for years and could have punctured the organ at any moment, causing severe bleeding. There were also fears about the mercury inside the device. If the glass had broken, the toxic substance could have caused serious internal harm.
The operation lasted just 20 minutes, during which doctors carefully removed the thermometer. It remained intact, although its markings had faded over time. More than one million people in China swallow foreign objects each year, with children accounting for around 60% of cases.
