Story By: John Feng, Sub Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Asia Wire Report

Doctors have removed this 3-inch twig from a woman’s face after she crashed into a tree in 2017 and medics cleaning her wound left it in her head for two years.

Wang Lianfeng’s family members took her to Shenzhen’s Second People’s Hospital in China’s southern province of Guangdong on 8th October after they found the thick broken twig growing out her cheek.

The wood lodged in her face for some 24 months had been pushed out the never-healing wound on her right cheek as her flesh grew around it, causing mucus and pus to streak down her face.

The 56-year-old’s daughter told local media: “She crashed off her scooter two years ago and a branch impaled her face.

“Local doctors cleaned her wound twice, but they didn’t do a thorough job. The wound didn’t heal, and the twig was slowly pushed out of her face.”

Doctor Wang Qiuxu, head of the oral surgery at Shenzhen Second People’s Hospital, said: “We ordered CT scans of the patient’s face. We found a vertical foreign body extending from the top of her skull to inside her cheek

“The piece of branch was about 8 centimetres (3.15 inches) in length.

“Besides the mucus coming out of her wound, the patient was also unable to fully open her mouth.

“The base of the twig was stopping her jaw from opening.”

Ms Wang’s surgery was scheduled for 9am local time on 10th October, with medics cutting open her cheek to remove the branch in full once and for all.

She is expected to undergo a period of recovery followed by physiotherapy to help her regain jaw flexibility and strength.

Doctor Wang said: “The twig was not in any way life-threatening, but it greatly affected her quality of life.

“If it had remained there for a longer period, her jaw muscles may have atrophied and she would not have been able to open her mouth in the future.”

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