Chinese man, 64, finds toothbrush he swallowed at age 12 stuck in intestine

SCMP | June 23, 2025, 9 p.m. | Original

A 64-year-old man in China who swallowed a toothbrush when he was 12 years old has finally had it removed from his stomach in an 80-minute surgical procedure. Photo: SCMP composite/Shutterstock/Douyin

A 64-year-old Chinese man who felt a strange sensation in his stomach and went to the doctor was shocked to discover that a toothbrush had been stuck in his intestines for 52 years.

The man, surnamed Yang, from eastern China’s Anhui province, said he remembered swallowing it at the age of 12 and was too scared to tell his parents about it.

Yang said he thought the toothbrush would dissolve by itself and had not felt anything untoward until recently.

Hospital doctors checked his digestive system and found the toothbrush stuck in his small intestine.

They performed endoscopic surgery on him and took the rogue 17cm dental implement out of his body in 80 minutes.

Despite the toothbrush being inside his body for many years, the man said he had not felt anything untoward until recently. Photo: handout
Despite the toothbrush being inside his body for many years, the man said he had not felt anything untoward until recently. Photo: handout

It was one of the longest items the hospital had taken out of a patient’s digestive system in the past three years.

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