Jelly Balls are Dangerous!

Schneider Children's specialists called on parents yet again after a large number of jelly balls were extracted from the stomach of a 2½-year-old toddler. "This is a dangerous occurrence as real injury can be caused", noted senior gastroenterologist Dr. Orit Waisbourd-Zinman.

The toddler was brought to the Emergency Medicine Department (ER) after his parents discovered that he had swallowed the jelly balls. An ultrasound scan revealed a large number of balls in the stomach, some of which had advanced to the small colon. The child was rushed to the operating room where many small jelly balls of 3-4mm were removed.

"This children's game is dangerous because of the potential for significant damage if the jelly balls are swallowed by toddlers as in this case. The balls easily swell inside the body and lead to life-threatening blockages in the duodenum," said Dr. Waisbourd-Zinman, who performed the gastroscopy, together with anesthetist Dr. Oren Ehrlichman and nurse Tamara Golekov.

This is the third case within the last two years where children have arrived at Schneider Children's after swallowing jelly balls. Luckily, this one was also successfully treated without any complications.