Before we begin, let me just say this as a pre-cursor to the story: I’m shocked. A surgeon in India has shared the rather interesting (if that’s the word) case of a 30-year-old man who came to him for medical help over abdominal pain recently, explaining that he had “accidentally” ingested a pair of headphones.
Upon operating, Dr Walliul Islam discovered a mobile phone charger inside the patient’s urinary bladder. And in a painful reveal, the surgeon explained that the phone charger—long cable included—found its way there via the patient’s urethra. The surgery was successful, although Dr Wallie questioned the mental health of the patient.
The surgeon explained that this is the first time he has come across something like this in 25 years in surgery, saying that the patient lied that he had swallowed the cable at first. According to Dr Walliul:
“He repeatedly told us that he consumed it through his mouth and we never imagined that an adult would lie about such a thing.”
The 30-year-old patient reportedly has a spotted history with such incidents. The surgeon revealed that he had become “accustomed” to using cables and other devices into his penis to sexually gratify himself. However, he apparently lost control this time, and the entire cable—around 61cm in length—was lost into his bladder when he was pleasuring himself.
5 days later, the patient finally swallowed his pride (and apparently, his cable) and went to receive medical attention from Dr Walliul. However, the surgeon explains that they could have avoided surgery altogether if the patient had been honest from the start—although the alternative sounds horribly painful:
“We could have done away with the surgery if he had told us the truth and removed the cable through the same route he inserted it.”
In any case, this method of gratification is called urethral sounding, which is basically the case when a person inserts a foreign object into his/her urethra for the purpose of masturbation. According to Healthline, this method was initially a medical procedure to clear blockages within the urethra, although it can also be “a satisfying form of sexual play”.
Still, losing your grip on a mobile phone cable has never had such dire consequences. And no, I don’t think that’s what they meant when they talked about “universal chargers”.
