A man survived being hit by a nail in the eye and brain.
- A man drove a nail into his eye and brain while working on a construction site.
- He miraculously survived, remaining only five days in the hospital after his operation.
- He had no neurological after-effects, but still lost his eye.
There are some who are more resistant than others. According to a new case studya man survived being shot with a nail in the eye and brain.
The report, written by the patient’s medical team at Sultanah Bahiyah Hospital in Malaysia, describes how the 30-year-old worked on a construction site and used a pneumatic nail gun without wearing protective glasses. The gun jammed, and when the man checked the barrel for a malfunction, it accidentally discharged into his left eye.
Only five days in hospital for a nail in the eye and brain
Upon arrival at the hospital, the man was described as “cooperative and perfectly oriented” despite his significant injuries. The man’s left eye was badly damaged and bleeding profusely, and he had lost vision in that side. However, it quickly became apparent that the problems went well beyond the eye.
An X-ray of the man’s skull showed that the nail had penetrated the frontal lobe of his brain, fracturing his eye socket in the process, and that the hemorrhage extended to neighboring brain regions.
The patient underwent emergency surgery to remove the nail, during which surgeons were able to confirm that the main arteries and olfactory nerves had fortunately not been damaged. They were also able to partially repair the damage to the eye, after which the patient spent a short time in intensive care.
“He recovered well during the postoperative period, without neurological deficit,” writes the doctor’s team, which specifies that he left the hospital after only five days of hospitalization. Unfortunately, the man’s vision had not returned during his last evaluation.
A nail in the eye and the brain: an often fatal injury
These types of injuries, called transorbital penetrating intracranial injuries (TOPI), are fortunately rare, but have a high mortality rate. When it comes to workplace injuries in general, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that 18,510 workers suffered eye injuries in 2020 alone, with just over a third caused by objects or foreign equipment.
The report’s authors conclude that this case should serve as a reminder of the importance of safety procedures in the workplace, emphasizing the need for employers to provide adequate equipment to prevent injuries.