Kitten almost blinded when she swallowed a needle that pierced her skull – The Mirror

Fourteen-week-old Nala needed emergecy surgery to remove the needle that got lodged in her throat and was millimeters from her eye socket

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A kitten was nearly blinded when she swallowed a sewing needle that pierced her skull, prompting dramatic surgery to save her eye.

Fourteen-week-old Nala of Cambridge ingested the two-inch long long needle that was left on the floor and was in agonising pain when it got wedged at the back of her throat.

The sharp point of the needle pierced the roof of Nalas mouth and became embedded in her skull.

Her owners Francouis and Inge Kroukamp, both 40, rushed their pet to the vets who referred her to Dick White Referrals.

She was rushed to the vet where x-rays were taken showing how close she came to ending up blind: The needle was millimeters away from Nalas eye socket.

Vets were concerned that if the needle was dislodged or snapped it could either blind Nala or fall into her stomach and cause potentially fatal internal bleeding.

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Surgeons used a minute camera to pin-point the exact spot where they could grab the needle with tiny forceps and gently tug it free.

Luckily, after the four-hour procedure earlier this month, Nala has made a full recovery and is back home with her relieved owners.

Francouis, of Haverhill, Suffolk, said: It was a very traumatic situation and we were really alarmed as it seemed to be a lose-lose situation.

The needle was near Nalas eye socket and there was a danger it could move and shed lose her eye or it could become dislodged and go down into her stomach and damager her intestines.

Head of cardiac surgery Poppy Bristow, internal medicine consultant Jess Florey and surgery resident Tom Anderson worked with the nursing, anaesthesia and imaging teams to rescue Nalas vision.

They used a mini camera to locate the needle at the back of her throat before making a small incision.

Ms Bristow said: Its very unusual to have a case where a sewing needle is stuck in a pets mouth like this. Ive certainly never had a case like it.

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Somehow little Nala had managed to eat a tiny sewing needle which became stuck in a rather unusual position.

"It had travelled through the hard palate and was pointing upwards into her head."

The needle was not visible from the mouth so they guided an endoscope - a tiny camera on a tube - to the back of her throat and nasal cavity.

Ms Bristow continued: Nala was quickly taken for surgery which was challenging as she is a small kitten and the needle was sitting over her hard palate, which is an extremely tricky area to reach.

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The needle was also very small so all of these things combined made it especially fiddly.

Once we made a surgical approach to the area, we re-inserted the scope to confirm the exact positioning."

They were able to remove the needle with small forceps in a difficult procedure.

Using a tiny pair of forceps, we then grasped the needle and carefully pulled it downwards, ensuring we maintained the same trajectory throughout so it didnt snap", said Ms Bristow.

It was very tricky but very successful. The needle was removed safely and Nala was bright and happy when she was discharged the following day."

Nala is now doing well after the successful surgery.

Ms Bristow said: When she subsequently came back for her post-operative check-up, she was doing very well indeed so were all delighted.

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Kitten almost blinded when she swallowed a needle that pierced her skull - The Mirror