Doctors in Uttar Pradesh’s Ghaziabad district successfully removed a staggering 29 steel spoons, 19 toothbrushes and two pans from a man’s stomach after a long and complex surgery.

The patient, identified as 35-year-old Sachin from Hapur city, was admitted with intense abdominal pain. Scans revealed dozens of sharp metal and plastic objects lodged inside his stomach.

According to Indian media reports, Sachin had been admitted to a rehabilitation center for drug treatment. He later told doctors that he began swallowing spoons, toothbrushes and pans out of anger and frustration.

He claimed that the center gave him very little food—often just a few vegetables and rotis. Feeling hungry and upset, he would steal spoons, break them in the bathroom, and swallow the pieces with water.

How the objects were removed

Doctors initially tried to retrieve the objects using endoscopy, but the sheer number made it impossible. They then performed surgery to safely remove all items.

“Such habits are often linked to patients with mental health issues,” the medical team explained, noting that swallowing sharp objects can cause life-threatening injuries if not treated quickly.

Not the first case in India

This is not the first such incident in the country.

In 2022, doctors in Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh, removed 63 spoons from the stomach of a drug addict.
In 2019, surgeons in Himachal Pradesh removed a spoon, screw, toothbrush, knife, and even a doorknob from the stomach of a man diagnosed with schizophrenia.