Residents of Ganze area in Kilifi County are reeling from the shock of a bizarre incident in which a man swallowed a toothbrush.
David Charo, 34, was brushing his teeth on Sunday, April 1, when the toothbrush inexplicably slid out of his hand and slipped down his throat.
Efforts by his young brother Julius Charo to remove the brush were futile.
“After failing to remove the toothbrush from my brother’s throat, I rushed him to a nearby hospital and was referred to Coast Provincial Hospital. Apart from x-rays, nothing has been done to him,” said Julius on Thursday.
The medical report showed that the brush is lodged in his lower abdomen.
His family says Charo has not had a meal since last Saturday and has been surviving on drinks only. He is said to have developed breathing difficulties.
According to Charo, the incident was an unfortunate accident. Some residents, however, linked it to witchcraft.
“I have used the toothbrush for the last 20 years. It unfortunate that it slipped from my hands on Sunday.”
“I can only lie down or stand, whenever I try to bend, I feel the toothbrush,” the father of two added.
“The toothbrush has stayed in my stomach for long and the doctors have only been telling me that I need an operation, but nothing much has been done.”
A doctor who sought anonymity said the toothbrush might result to suffocation and obstruction of oxygen flow in the oesophagus if it stays in the patient’s body for long.
“Being blunt, the object can cause no major harm, but it can cause breathing complications,” the doctor said.
Charo’s family faulted the the hospital for neglecting their kin.
“We came here on Sunday and to date, nothing has been done. We have waited to get directions from the hospital management but nothing is coming forth,” said Charo’s elder brother Hamisi Charo.
