Sheikh Khalifa Medical City Surgeons Save Two Year Old Boy's Life After Removing Broken Pencil Pieces From Eye Socket

Local Boy Expected to Make Full Recovery Following Lifesaving Operation: Chair of Ophthalmology and Chair of Neurosurgery

Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates: Surgeons at Abu Dhabi’s Sheikh Khalifa Medical City (SKMC) have successfully removed broken pencil pieces from a two year old boy’s eye socket, which were causing life-threatening abscesses in the child’s brain and orbit.

The pencil pieces and abscess were removed simultaneously by surgeons from the Ophthalmology and Neurosurgery departments at the hospital who, after working for four and half hours, managed to save the local boy that had fallen and landed on the pencil.

“The patient had been previously treated for his abscess elsewhere, however the lodged pencil pieces were causing the brain abscess to consistently recur and affect his speech and ability to walk, as well causing him to become drowsy,” said Dr. Habibullah Eatamadi, Chair of Ophthalmology at SKMC and Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons in Edinburgh – the surgeon who removed the pencil pieces.

After being transferred to the hospital, the SKMC team quickly conducted CT and MRI scans that showed foreign bodies behind his right eye, and directly performed the surgery which saved the child’s eye and life, according to the surgeons.

Dr. Essam Elgamal, Paediatric Neurosurgeon and Chair of Neurosurgery at SKMC and also a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons in Edinburgh, removed the abscess via a craniotomy, a procedure where a window is made in the skull to access the brain and replaced back after removal of the abscess.

“Though he had previously had his brain abscess drained twice, the lodged pencil pieces continued to cause a build-up of pus and swelling of the brain. We were able to open his skull and excise the abscess containing the pus and infected tissue. Thankfully, he is now almost fully recovered,” Dr. Elgamal said.

The two year old completed eight weeks of intravenous antibiotics and anti-convulsion medications, made a full recovery and was discharged from the hospital.

“Cases like these are a true reflection of SKMC’s mission to provide the local community with the highest quality care available. Patients are the core focus of all of our activities, and these kinds of urgent cases continue to drive our ‘Patients First’ philosophy that we practice daily, and continues to highlight SKMC's quality of care,” said Dr. Abdulmajeed Al Zubaidi, Chief Medical Officer at SKMC, member of the American Board of Internal Medicine.

SKMC, managed by Cleveland Clinic, is part of the SEHA HealthSystem and owned and operated by Abu Dhabi Health Services Company PJSC (SEHA), which is responsible for the curative activities of all the public hospitals and clinics in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi.