Magnetic toy ingestion: surgical implications

Children often ingest foreign bodies wihtout major consequences. Most foreign bodies will pass through the gastrointestinal tract without any detrimental results although in the case of multiple magnet ingestion, perforation and pressure necrosis, among a host of other possible effects, can occur. We describe a case of multiple bowel perforations as a result of fistulization from magnetic attraction across portions of the intestinal wall that demonstrate the importance in acquiring surgical attention.