Warning: Graphic Images
A teenager who was impaled in the neck by a flying needlefish required life-saving surgery to remove the fish from his body.
Muhammad Idul, from Indonesia, was fishing with his parents in Buton waters off the South East Sulawesi province on Saturday, January 18, when the fish jumped out of the water.
The fish’s long snout sliced through the 16-year-old’s neck and pierced the back of his skull, creating a large gaping hole that went straight through to the other side of his neck – from under his chin right through to the back of his skull.
The student was rushed to hospital for treatment, where doctors decided surgery was the best option. He was then referred to another hospital and underwent the risky surgery to remove the fish two days later.
The two-hour operation at Wahidin Sudirohusodo Hospital involved three surgeons and two anaesthetists on Monday, January 20.
Doctor Syafri K. Arif, an anaesthesia specialist at the hospital, told local news site Makassar Terkin why the operation was so risky:
To remove the fish snout, one must be very careful because there is a large vessel in the neck.
However, the doctor said one of the advantages of the operation was the fish snout was still stuck inside the teenager’s neck, stating: ‘Luckily it was not released, so the fish’s snout is blocking the bleeding.’
The anaesthetist described how surgeons had to ‘pull [the fish] out slowly’ in the operating room because of this large blood vessel.
Muhammad remains in hospital due to the risk of infection and his condition is relatively stable, with the general director of the hospital, Doctor Khalid Saleh, telling Antara News: ‘The child is relatively stable, but at present, the patient is still feverish.’
As soon as pictures of the boy’s injuries went viral on social media, many expressed their shock at how serious the boy’s injuries were, with one person asking: ‘How is he still alive?’
However, perhaps the teenager’s injuries shouldn’t be all that shocking, as needlefish are distinguished by their long, slender jaw bearing multiple sharp teeth capable of inflicting deep wounds.
Couple that with their ability to jump – the fish are renowned for leaping out of the water at up to 60km/h – and it becomes less surprising.
Hopefully Muhammad will make a full recovery and will be out of the hospital in no time.
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A Broadcast Journalism Masters graduate who went on to achieve an NCTJ level 3 Diploma in Journalism, Lucy has done stints at ITV, BBC Inside Out and Key 103. While working as a journalist for UNILAD, Lucy has reported on breaking news stories while also writing features about mental health, cervical screening awareness, and Little Mix (who she is unapologetically obsessed with).