Community Chat

[Passion Flower]

An amateur tattooist who lost a half-inch needle in his arm was surprised to find it 40 years later—in one of his big toes, Australia's News Network reports. Ulf Bergström of Mala, Sweden, says he lost the needle while tattooing himself in 1974. He was worried enough to seek medical attention, The Local reports, but X-rays didn't spot the needle. "After the needle didn’t 'get in touch' I completely forgot about it," said Bergström, who's now 63.

That changed last month when he felt an excruciating pain in the big toe of his right foot. His wife found a big lump there—a blood-filled pimple—which she pricked and "squeezed out a lot of puss" and other unsavory stuff, she said. Lo and behold, she pulled out the trusty old needle. "It’s been in my body for 40 years," he said. "The only question is which route it has taken, that is something I would like to know." Oh, and that big toe—he says it still hurts.

[raven-blackbird]

I know of this happening before........a great aunt of mine stepped on a needle and it broke off in her foot.........some 20 years later, she got a bump , what she thought was a boil, on her hip, turned out it was the piece of broken needle...........my great aunt and this man are darn lucky, that those broken needle bits did go to a lung or their heart......................................raven

[croemer]

Whoa...

[RibbonsRosesRainbows]

Oh my...........I would have gone to the doctor and had him remove the needle. He for sure should get a tetanus shot.

[brewhaha]

Was his name Puss-in-boots?

[NC Bandwagon]

I am...speechless.

[chrystaltree]

He's incredibly lucky. It could have travelled to his heart, his lung or his brain or piereced a blood vessel. He's the luckiest guy in the world!

[Madisson]

Weird.

[Madame Lorrraine]

The human body is an amazing thing.

[Elstongunn]

The same thing happens in dogs with porcupine quills in their mouths and people attempt to take them out incorrectly. If a part of a quill is left in the dog, it can travel into the head where a lot of damage can be done.