Mom mistakes instant glue for ear drops

Mpls Red Star Tribune ^ | Jul 2, 2002 | Associated Press

[wallcrawlr]

A newspaper in Taiwan says a 14-year-old boy needed a 20-minute operation to remove congealed glue from his ear. It got there because his mother mistook a small bottle of instant glue for ear drops.

The teen's doctor says the two bottles were kept next to each other in the refrigerator, and the mother grabbed the wrong one when she went to treat the boy's inflamed ear.

[johniegrad]

I had a patient once who was self-abusive and had a history of molestation. She repeatedly glued her labia together and required surgical intervention.

[splach78]

ouch

[Xenalyte]

Besides this guy's family, who keeps glue in the fridge?

[xJones]

In college I worked part-time for a pharmacy. We had to start typing, "Remove the aluminum foil before using" on labels for suppository prescriptions because one customer didn't.

[Larry Lucido]

"Remove the aluminum foil before using"

Why remove the foil? That's not where I put the suppository.

[BikerTrash]

Cyanoacrylate, (crazy glue, super glue, "instant glue"), supposedly lasts longer and keeps better in the fridge.

No excuse for dumping your kids head full of it, however. An unfortunate mistake?

[TADSLOS]

"Can you hear me now?"

Sorry, couldn't resist...

[GovernmentShrinker]

Given her history, this sounds more like self-defense than self-abuse. A fairly rational response under the circumstances -- probably gave her a sense of safety.

[Pearls Before Swine]

This reminds me of American Pie 2. Don't mistake crazy glue for eardrops...or a personal lubricating aid.

[Redcloak]

Well, where else would you store adhesives?!? ...muttered the engineer.

[GovernmentShrinker]

Makes you wonder how the kid survived infancy and early childhood. It's a wonder he wasn't spoon-fed various household cleaners and pesticides.

[johniegrad]

There's an element of her symptom that is understandable but, I would argue, not particularly rational or adaptive.

[GovernmentShrinker]

Not entirely rational, of course, but I can't help but wonder what the effect would have been on a would-be molester/rapist. Did she present herself for surgical intervention after changing her mind, and then go and do it again? Or did someone else keep discovering it and bringing her in for surgery?

[wallcrawlr]

remember mr. yuck??
the little green stickers

[johniegrad]

Actually, she would do this during dissociative episodes and then present to the ER after discovering what she had done. Her abuse had occurred during her childhood but she was in her 20's when she did these things. However, the intent psychologically is what you have suggested. There just was no active abuse going in her adult life.

[MrNeutron1962]

Actually, Locktite recommends refrigeration for their cyanoacrylate glues. When I was a lad, we used it by the quart in some manufacturing processes I was involved with. Nothing like bottle of glue next to your baloney sandwiches.

[NewHampshireDuo]

Gee, reminds me of when my sisters and I were very little kids and my grandmother (the bossy one) was staying with us while my folks were away. She was in a hurry one morning and put shaving cream on our toothbrushes (she had grabbed the wrong tube from the medicine cabinet). When we tried to tell her, she yelled at us so we obediantly brushed and gagged. I'm 55 yrs old and still recall the incident like it was yesterday.

Mrs. NHD

[Lokibob]

I read in an Air Force safety magazine about an AF Capt who accidently put super glue in her eye, because the bottle was the same shape as her eye drops. Apparently VERY painful. You must be careful.

[Calvin Locke]

I was a teenager when I fixed a beanbag chair. Somehow managed to glue my finger to it. Had to carry it around looking for Mom's nailpolish remover.