SINGAPORE – A simple procedure to fill a tooth turned out to be a nightmare for Mr W and his wife, Ms Rina, when he ended up hospitalised for several days.

During the dental procedure at Jurong Polyclinic on the morning of May 28, part of the equipment the dentist was using on his tooth fell off and went down his throat.

When asked about the incident, a spokesman for the National University Polyclinics (NUP) said when a foreign object is suspected to be lodged in a patient’s body, the dentist would first do a dental X-ray to scan the upper and lower jaw and try to locate the object. If the object is not visible, the patient would be referred for further imaging scans, such as chest, lateral neck, and abdominal X-rays. “These scans would help determine the position of the fine instrument,” the spokesman said.

In this case, the dentist gave Mr W, who did not want to be named, a referral letter and told him to go to the emergency department of the nearest hospital to have it removed. Mr W, 51, took a bus to Ng Teng Fong General Hospital, where he was admitted.

He had to undergo several scans over the next few days as doctors monitored where the piece was. His wife was frantic, fearing it might hurt him while it remained in his body. All they did on the first day was take an X-ray, Ms Rina told The Straits Times.

“It was only the next day that they tried to retrieve the item with a scope, but the attempt failed because it was too late,” she said. The scan on May 30 showed that it had moved into his small intestines.

She still had difficulty believing that something could fall off dental equipment and go down the throat into the stomach. She asked: “How possible is this?”

The doctors told the couple they would monitor for two weeks before considering surgery to remove it. She said: “They tried to reassure me that there is no bleeding. Only if there is bleeding, then they will operate.”

The doctors decided that since it was not doing any damage, they would wait and see if it could be passed naturally.

On the afternoon of May 30, polyclinic representatives visited her husband with a basket of fruit, and assured him that they would pick up the bill. On checking in, he had to undertake to pay for the treatment, which Ms Rina said “is totally unfair” since it was their (the polyclinic’s) fault that he landed in hospital.

With the object wending its way through his small intestine, “the medical team will continue to closely monitor the patient for any discomfort or symptoms, such as pain, difficulty swallowing or abdominal discomfort”, the NUP spokesman said at the time.

Scans would be repeated “to check if the foreign object has been passed out through bowel movements. During this time, the care team will closely monitor the patient to ensure timely intervention if needed. The goal is typically for the foreign object to be expelled naturally”.

On May 31, a scan showed that the object was near or in the big intestines. Said Ms Rina then: “I don’t know whether to laugh or to cry. There seems to be no damage, but it is still inside. They are now sending all his poo to the lab to check if it has come out.”

It was only on June 3, a week after the incident, that Ms Rina texted to say: “He gave birth this morning!” The object was finally out, and Mr W was discharged.

Ms Rina said it was an anxious time, with three of their four children having exams at this time. She added that her husband is glad the filling of his tooth was largely done, as he does not want to step into that clinic again.

The spokesman said: “It’s important to note that incidents like these are extremely rare, and patient safety and well-being are always top priority. Dentists and medical professionals here strictly adhere to safety guidelines and protocols in such instances.”

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This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.