In Soroti city, a six-year-old boy named Godwin Echodu narrowly escaped a life-threatening situation after swallowing a geometry compass.
On a Friday evening, Echodu returned home from the latrine in distress, complaining that he couldn’t defecate and was experiencing diarrhea with blood. Concerned, his father, Geoffrey Amoret, pressed him for an explanation.
Echodu revealed that a friend had given him a part of a geometry compass to play with on Wednesday afternoon after school. He had accidentally swallowed it but had been too scared to inform his parents about it.
Medical professionals later confirmed that the swallowed piece measured approximately six centimeters.
The family’s ordeal continued as Echodu retained the compass in his stomach for almost three days, from 2:00 p.m. on Wednesday, September 27, 2023, until around 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, September 30, 2023, when doctors at Joint Clinic Soroti successfully removed it.
The parents rushed Echodu to Joint Clinic-Soroti, where an X-ray revealed the compass’s presence. Dr. Emmanuel Opio and senior consultant surgeon Dr. Joseph Epodoi performed an endoscopic surgery to extract the metal safely. This minimally invasive procedure, which utilizes a camera-equipped flexible tube, allowed for a swift recovery with minimal pain and discomfort.
The local community became aware of the incident when Echodu’s parents brought him to be prayed for by Reverend Stephen Omoko at Otucopi Pentecostal Assemblies of God on a Sunday.
Dr. Epodoi, who has worked as a doctor for three decades, described this case as the first of its kind in his career. While they encounter about three cases per month of children swallowing objects like coins and bottle tops, a compass was a unique occurrence.
He emphasized the fortunate outcome, explaining that the compass’s blunt end had led its path through the intestines, ultimately resting in the rectum, making it possible for removal without major surgery. Had the pointed end been leading, it could have punctured internal organs, posing a life-threatening risk necessitating surgical intervention.