Docs save kid's needle-struck eye

A miracle of sorts unfolded at the AIIMS Trauma Centre on Friday. Eighteen-month-old Kumkum was brought to the hospital with a crochet
needle protruding out of her right eye. Today, the child is well on her road to full recovery and has suffered no vision loss.

Kumkum was playing with a crochet needle at home when she accidentally fell on the bed from a pile of quilts kept on it. The needle penetrated her right eye. She was first rushed to a nearby hospital from where she was taken to the trauma centre. "She was restless and had difficulty in breathing when she was brought in. We first had to sedate her in order to begin treatment as she was in pain. We then cleared her airway and stabilised her for anaesthesia," said Dr Kapil Dev Soni, anaesthetist, AIIMS Trauma Centre.

For the neurosurgeons at the trauma centre, it was a rare and challenging case. The needle had to be brought out without further damaging the eye. "We tried to pull it out, but it was difficult and therefore we decided to open her skull and pull it from the other end. From x-ray and CT scan showed that the needle had penetrated deep and had damaged the outer covering of the brain," said Dr Deepak Gupta, assistant professor of neurosurgery, who performed the operation. "We made a 4cm x 3 cm cut on the skull and retracted the brain. We increased the perforation in order to pull out the needle, which was very thick towards the end, smoothing and then repaired the outer covering of the brain. The needle just missed the brain by a few millimetres. But the outer covering was damaged due to the impact and this resulted in leaking of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)," he added.

Kumkum was fortunate that she underwent surgery within three hours of the accident. Had there been a delay, it could have proved fatal. "CSF was leaking and had there been any further delay it would have resulted in brain haemorrhage. She was also lucky the needle missed the cornea and other important parts of the eye structure, which is crucial for vision. Thankfully her vision was not damaged at all," said Dr Gupta.

For Kumkum's mother Puneeta, it was a miracle. Her carelessness would have cost the little girl her life, but timely action and Puneeta's presence of mind saved Kumkum. "When I saw the needle inside her eye I was really scared. But I didn't pull the needle out as I feared that I would damage it further and I didn't want to take a chance," said Puneeta.

Said Dr M C Sharma, chief, AIIMS Trauma Centre, "This injury was completely avoidable. It is an important message to parents who have small children that they should keep things like needles out of their child's reach. Though Kumkum is out of danger, we are keeping our fingers crossed, as she runs a risk of developing meningitis due to leaking of CSF. But she is out of danger.