Desperate parents of a three-year-old boy who suffered acute sore throat having mistakenly drunk caustic soda (used in soap making) had to resort to feeding the toddler through the anus due to his worsening condition.
Doctors at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) say surgery is the only option left to save the life of the three-year-old boy.
The father of the boy, Razak Anaba, who hails from Nyame Bekyere near Asakrangwa in Western Region justified his action which doctors described as crude.
The toddler, Yakubu Razak for about a year lost the ability to eat. His parents then resorted to feeding him through the anus by administering liquid foods using a syringe bulb known in local parlance as �Bentoa�.
The Head of the Paediatric Surgery Unit at KATH, Dr. Boateng Animako told Nhyira News� Ohemeng Tawiah that extensive surgery is needed to eradicate the boy�s predicament.
Doctors at the hospital, have as a stop gap measure, created a passage in Yakubu's rib region in the upper part of his body for purposes of feeding.
The doctors expressed worry about the apathetic nature of some parents to the safety of their children despite increase in public education.
Health officials at KATH revealed that about 25 cases where toddlers feed on hazardous substances were recorded at the hospital in 2012.
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