Doctors in India have successfully removed a 12-inch iron rod from a boy’s shoulder after he fell while playing at school.
Lalit Kumar, 12, from Greater Noida, northern India, was swinging on the iron rod of a window canopy when it suddenly collapsed, causing the rod to pierce his shoulder, leaving him unconscious and lying under the debris.
Local residents heard the noise and rushed over to find Lalit in a pool of blood.
After enduring an hour-long surgery performed by four doctors to remove the rod, Lalit is recovering well at home.
His father Dharampal Kumar, 33, a labourer, said: ‘We feel blessed that our son has been saved as the rod could have pierced to his heart, brain or eyes. He could have been killed but to see him alive and recovering with us is a great blessing.’
Doctors have removed a 12-inch iron rod from a boy’s shoulder after he fell while playing
Lalit Kumar, 12, was swinging on the iron rod of a window canopy when it suddenly collapsed
This caused the rod to pierce his shoulder, leaving him unconscious and lying under the debris
‘He had a huge rod pierced through his shoulder’
Mr Kumar said: ‘Our house is about 200 metres from the school.
‘We rushed to the school after finding out our son was injured, we saw him covered in blood as others tried to give him first aid.
‘He had a huge rod pierced through his shoulder, it was shocking and devastating to see my child lying unconscious in that state.’
Lalit was taken to Kailash hospital, in Greater Noida, and was immediately sent to intensive care.
Brijender Kumar Sharma, the assistant general manager at the hospital, said: ‘His condition was critical when he came to us.
‘He had excessive blood loss and was breathless but doctors had to confirm his injuries before operating.
‘As his condition was worsening, the doctors did not take any further risks of waiting and decided to operate on him that night.’
Local residents heard the noise and rushed over to find Lalit lying in a pool of his own blood
Lalit was taken to Kailash hospital and was immediately transferred to intensive care
As his condition was progressively worsening, doctors wasted no time in operating
It took a team of four doctors one hour to remove the 12-inch rod from Lalit’s shoulder
‘To see him alive is a great blessing’
The 12-inch iron rod was removed in an hour-long surgery by a team of four doctors led by the chief orthopedic surgeon Dr Amit Sharma.
Dr Sharma said: ‘The boy was given emergency treatment as the rod had pierced close to his arteries and heart.
‘We had to be extremely careful during the surgery for that reason. Fortunately, the surgery was successful.’
Lalit is now stable and was discharged from hospital yesterday.
His family are waiting to hear if they will receive any financial assistance for the Rs 50,000 (£500) they spent on their son’s surgery. Mr Kumar earns the equivalent of around £3 a day.
He said: ‘We have the hospital bills and so far we have paid for everything on our own. Neither the school authority, nor the government has provided us with any financial support so far.
‘We still feel blessed that our son has been saved as the rod could have pierced to his heart, brain or eyes. He could have been killed but to see him alive and recovering with us is a great blessing.’
The doctors had to be particularly careful as the rod was nearby to Lalit’s arteries and heart
After a successful operation, Lalit is stable and was discharged from hospital yesterday
His family are waiting to see if they will receive financial support for his £500-procedure
Lalit’s father earns around £3 a day as a labourer (pictured with his relatives)