Mother's shock after 'lost' contraceptive implant ended up in her LUNGS - and doctors fear removing it could tear an artery

A mother-of-two was horrified aft discovering her 'lost' contraceptive implant ended up successful her lungs. 

Rebecca Hardy, from Nottinghamshire, went to get nan matchstick-sized implant removed because she'd had it wrong her near limb for 3 years. 

But nan 29-year-old's expert and galore different medics couldn't find it.

When they yet recovered nan device, it was successful 1 of her pulmonary arteries – captious humor vessels that transportation humor from nan bosom to nan lungs.

Ms Hardy says doctors person warned her of nan imaginable dangers of removing nan implant, pinch them fearing it could tear an artery if taken out. As such, she claims they person decided to time off it wherever it is. 

She said: 'I was fixed nan action to effort and effort removal but was advised it's a very vulnerable procedure.

'There isn't a 100 per cent chance of it going right, aliases it moreover being imaginable for it to beryllium removed. Plus, it could make things worse for myself and tear my artery.

'Because I had nary signs of problems aliases trouble complete nan years, I agreed to time off it wherever it is and not return immoderate consequence arsenic it's a large procedure.

'I person 2 children to deliberation about.'

Ms Hardy is not nan only women whose contraceptive implant migrated.

In 2019, a 31-year-old successful Portugal besides needed her implant removed from her lungs. 

Doctors couldn't consciousness nan device, which tin usually beryllium noticed arsenic a mini difficult rod successful nan precocious arm, so did scans connected which it showed up wrong her chest.

In their study they suggested nan instrumentality could person shifted retired of spot successful nan limb – wherever it is expected to stay for 3 years to merchandise hormones – and into veins and arteries.

Before Covid struck, UK wellness chiefs moreover issued guidance connected nan backmost of increasing reports of Nexplanon – nan aforesaid implant Ms Hardy had – ending up successful arteries.

Ms Hardy, who shared her communicative connected TikTok, recalled being worried astir nan instrumentality pursuing its insertion into her precocious limb backmost successful 2018.  

'I could ne'er consciousness it successful my near arm,' Ms Hardy, who has 2 children Lexxie, six, and Dexter, seven, said.

'I rang up nan session nan adjacent time aft having it fitted to opportunity I couldn't consciousness it successful my arm, and they told maine to hold and telephone backmost if I still continued to not consciousness it.'

She visited nan session later that period for a check-up, and claims she was told not to interest and that it was 'just a heavy implant'.

Ms Hardy added: 'It conscionable sewage left, but complete nan years I continued to interest and interest astir it.'

Nexplanon is simply a of contraceptive implant that helps forestall gestation by gradually releasing progestogen into nan body.

Progestogen stops nan ovaries releasing an ovum each period and nan implant is 99 per cent effective successful stopping pregnancy, studies suggest. 

The integrative instrumentality is astir 4cm agelong and is inserted nether nan tegument successful nan limb and tin enactment location for up to 3 years, according to nan NHS. 

Ms Hardy said she vividly recalled her consciousness of fearfulness and interest successful March 2021, erstwhile it became clear nan implant was not wherever it should be.

'I started to outcry pinch worry,' she said. 

'Not only was I panicking, but past I had to hold weeks for nan CT scan and X-rays, and past moreover longer for nan results.

'I didn't find retired until a twelvemonth later wherever my implant was.'

She was sent for a thorax X-ray to find it connected July 7, but she claims she didn't get her results until she was booked into a face-to-face assignment successful February 2022.

She besides says doctors told her nan implant had travelled to her pulmonary artery and warned of nan imaginable dangers posed by trying to region it.

Ms Hardy said: 'On nan gestation broadside of things, I person been told I will still beryllium capable to conceive but it mightiness beryllium astir 8 years for nan hormones to afloat finish.

'I person been offered support if I ever want to effort for much children.'

A missive from her expert says the implant has 'come to remainder successful a branch of nan pulmonary artery' of her near lung.

It adds that it is likely that astatine nan clip of insertion aliases soon afterwards, nan implant passed done her humor vessels, done nan correct broadside of her heart, and into nan artery.

The expert calls it an 'extremely uncommon but recognised complications pinch nan implant fit' and says she was 'extremely unfortunate'. 

Ms Hardy has precocious shared her communicative to TikTok, wherever nan clip has truthful acold gained much than 1.2million views. 

In nan clip, she attaches 3 pictures, nan first being of a paper from nan session saying erstwhile to person her implant out.

She writes complete nan top: 'I had nan implant successful 2018, and was owed to travel retired successful 2021, but they couldn't find it.'

In nan 2nd picture, she shows a bid of letters astir her CT scans and X-rays, revealing that they had recovered it successful her artery.

She besides posted nan X-ray image, showing nan implant lodged successful her chest. 

Ms Hardy said: 'Now aft astir 7 years it's still location arsenic it's excessively vulnerable to beryllium removed.'

While she is trying to move on, Ms Hardy has been near emotion upset by nan business and its lasting effects.

She said: 'I presently consciousness very depressed from nan full business complete nan years and knowing it's wrong maine forever.

'I'm emotionally surgery reasoning it will return a agelong clip for maine to autumn pregnant again but I'm conscionable trying to deliberation positively.'

A spokesperson for Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust said: 'We person offered Ms Hardy an assignment to alteration america to counsel connected her ongoing appraisal and curen arsenic required.

'Unfortunately, implant migration is simply a known, uncommon complication (1 successful 1.3 million); nan UK's Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (NHRA) issued a information alert astir nan consequence successful 2016.'

Although it is very uncommon for implants to spell missing, respective cases person recorded it is imaginable for the implant to reach nan lungs, arsenic successful Ms Hardy's case. 

The first reported lawsuit of 'intravascular migration of implants' was successful 2014.

There person been 11 further cases reported, according to a 2021 report published by nan British Institute of Radiology. 

The study suggested heavy insertion, insertion adjacent nan mobile associated abstraction and patients pinch debased BMI are astir astatine consequence of 'migration'. 

However, nan shaper updated its proposal for nan insertions of nan implant successful 2020.

It explored nan anatomy of nan limb to place an insertion tract pinch nan lowest number of vascular structures to trim nan consequence of migration.