Surgeons in China removed shocking 61 magnetic balls from a four-year-old girl’s stomach who ended up with 14 holes in her intestine after accidentally swallowing the beads.

The little girl, who was not named in local media in Hangzhou, in Zhejiang Province, was rushed into a two-hour surgery after complaining of severe stomach pains for a month.

CT scans at the Children’s Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine quickly revealed a beaded necklace inside her stomach, consisting of 61 metal balls.

Doctors reportedly suspected the girl had swallowed the magnetic balls on different occasions, and as they were attracted to each other, they came together and formed a long necklace.

The nearly 1-metre-long magnetic beads caused the girl’s intestine to perforate in 14 places.

Thankfully, the doctors were able to remove the necklace and sew each of the holes it punctured back in place after a careful operation.

Doctor Chen Qingjiang, who was in charge of the case, told local media the surgery was successful, but the girl needs to be keep being hospitalized for further treatment.

She still faces a great risk of intestinal adhesion and obstruction in future, the doctor said.

The doctor added: “After we released adhesions, we discovered 14 holes. We repaired them one by one and it all went smoothly. But to the child, the operation was still a major trauma.”

She is now recovering, but faces a higher risk of intestinal adhesion and obstruction in future as a result of her ordeal, Chen added.