We remind you of the dangers of netted swimming shorts:
Are you the mum of a little boy? If you are, then heed UK mum Laura Collins' warning about the very real danger that netted swimming trunks may pose -- to your son's penis!
Speaking to British publication Mirror, Laura revealed her shock when she tried to remove her five-year-old son Jack's swimming shorts while on holiday, and the inner netting got tangled around the end of his penis.
“He let out the most gut-wrenching scream I’ve ever heard; it’s a sound no mother should ever hear,” said the horrified mum.
She took her son to the reception of the hotel she was staying in and asked for scissors, but staff there had advised her to take the little boy to a doctor straight away.
However, reports say that even staff at the local health centre had no luck removing the netting.
According to Laura, “The netting had became caught around the end of his willy and it was strangulating it. There were two little bubbles either side, like skin, like it was going to burst."
At this point, Jack was rushed to hospital, where doctors managed to cut him free after administering local anaesthetic.
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Image from Mirror[/caption]
Doctors concerned about internal damage
Reportedly, doctors were concerned that the strangulating netting had affected the little boy's urinary tract because of the pressure it was causing on his penis. However, luckily, the little boy was able to urinate after a while and doctors confirmed all was okay.
Laura expressed her absolute relief that no harm had come to her little boy from the incident. But she said it was "horrific to see him in so much pain."
We're happy to learn that Jack has bounced back from the incident, even though he still talks about it.
"He talks about how he nearly lost his willy on holiday and goes on about the naughty netting. He’s been warning all his friends as he doesn’t want the same thing to happen to them," says his mum.
Mums reading this, if you do have a little boy or two at home, please ensure you check their swimming shorts for netting inside and either cut it off, or make sure your child wears speedos underneath.
As always, it's better to be safe than sorry when it comes to your child's safety and wellbeing, and stories like this are good eye-openers to the fact that danger may lurk in the most unexpected of places.
Has this happened to a child you know? Do share your thoughts on this story in a comment below.