The danger of magnet attraction: an 11-year cohort of pediatric intestinal complications due to magnet ingestion

A total of 42 patients had a history of magnet ingestion, with the number of ingested magnets ranging from 1 to 41. The median magnet size was 11 mm (range: 5.5-17.5 mm) and the median time to presentation was 24 hours (range: 3-48 hours). Thirteen patients (30.9%) required either endoscopic or surgical intervention to extract the magnets or address complications. Endoscopy was performed on eight patients, while surgical intervention was required for five patients. Among those who underwent surgery, four experienced complications, including intestinal perforation, ileoileal fistula, and internal herniation. Notably, no fatalities occurred following intervention. There was no statistically significant difference in age or magnet size between the interventional and non-interventional groups. However, the length of hospital stay was significantly longer in the interventional group compared to the non-interventional group (P.