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What Should I Do After Swallowing A Knife?
I was trying to open a can of vegetable barley soup with one of those flip tops and couldn't get it open. So I took a ceramic knife (pretty sharp) and tried to pry it open and it was resisting so I got a spoon to open it up. I ate a cup of the soup about 3 hours ago. I never noticed anything gritty or hard when I ate it. I just went downstairs and was cleaning up the dishes and noticed a small bit of the knife was missing. It measured about 1/2 cm. by 3 mm. I looked all over for it and could not find it, not even on the counter and the little bit of soup left in the pot. If I swallowed it what do I do now? Just wait? What do I look for? I am very upset about this.
Wed, 5 Feb 2014
Hello and welcome to Healthcare Magic. Thanks for your query.
If you have a suspicion that you may have swallowed a piece of the knife, then it is best to seek medical attention immediately. Even though the possibility of not noticing it when swallowing is very less, still, it is better to be on the safe side and see a doctor. Usually, an X-ray would be able to confirm if it is there or not.
The danger signs that you should watch for are pain in the abdomen, passing black stools or blood in stools, dizziness or passing out. I would advise you to visit your local emergency department to have a doctor examine and evaluate you.
Wish you all the best.
Regards,
Dr. Jonas Sundarakumar
If you have a suspicion that you may have swallowed a piece of the knife, then it is best to seek medical attention immediately. Even though the possibility of not noticing it when swallowing is very less, still, it is better to be on the safe side and see a doctor. Usually, an X-ray would be able to confirm if it is there or not.
The danger signs that you should watch for are pain in the abdomen, passing black stools or blood in stools, dizziness or passing out. I would advise you to visit your local emergency department to have a doctor examine and evaluate you.
Wish you all the best.
Regards,
Dr. Jonas Sundarakumar
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