A tragic incident occurred when a young child suffered a heart attack and lost a significant portion of his tongue after accidentally ingesting drain cleaner, mistaking it for milk.
Thirteen-month-old Sam Anwar Alshameri stumbled upon the toxic liquid at his family’s Birmingham home while his mother was tidying up.
The hazardous substance inflicted severe burns on the toddler’s airway, lips, mouth, and tongue. In May, a dedicated team of 27 medical professionals worked tirelessly to save his life.
Following the ordeal, Sam endured two months in intensive care and now faces challenges in eating, drinking, and speaking, as his lips have nearly sealed shut due to the severity of his injuries.
His father, Nadeen Alshameri, a 37-year-old father of four, shared that Sam requires intricate surgical procedures to aid his recovery.
Nadeen, who works in a warehouse, explained that his wife Mukhtara, 27, was occupied cleaning the bathroom while their children—aged seven, three, one, and eight months—remained in the living room.
Unbeknownst to her, Sam wandered in behind her and picked up the bottle she had placed on the floor while unblocking the sink and bath.
Mr Alshameri said: ‘She didn’t see him behind her.
Sam Anwar Alshameri was rushed to hospital after he drank drain cleaner after mistaking it for milk
Nadeen Alshameri with his son. The His father wants to take his son to specialists in Germany and Turkey where could have an operation
‘He thought the bottle was milk. By the time we knew what had happened, it was already burning him.’
Sam ingested the drain cleaner and immediately suffered life-threatening internal burns.
He was rushed to Birmingham Women’s and Children’s Hospital and while in A&E, he had a heart attack.
‘When we went to the hospital it was burning his airway and his mouth, he can’t say a word now,’ Mr Alshameri said.
‘They told me they had never seen it before. They had to find the best doctor because it was the first time this had happened.’
Sam’s heart stopped for nearly three minutes before doctors were able to resuscitate him.
‘I can’t ever forget that moment,’ his dad added.
Doctors were forced to remove Sam’s feeding tube from his nose and insert a permanent tube directly into his stomach.
Sam spent two months in intensive care and has been left unable to eat, drink or speak and his lips have almost entirely sealed shut due to his burns
His mouth has begun to seal shut and he now only has a tiny gap left which is too small to swallow food or drink.
‘They can’t see inside his mouth,’ he said.
‘They don’t know what’s happening because every doctor tells me something different.’
He says Sam is on a waiting list for urgent reconstructive surgery, with no date confirmed, but is out of hospital and being cared for at home.
‘NHS told me we are in good hands, but nothing is happening,’ Mr Alshameri said.
‘They said it could be next week, next month and I just don’t know. I can’t wait anymore. My boy is sick.’
He claims some doctors have said surgery may be possible, while others say it is too early, and some simply don’t know because they’ve never treated a case like his son’s before.
Mr Alshameri wants to take his son to specialists in Germany and Turkey, and he has set up a GoFundMe page to raise money for a potential operation and medication.
‘With rent, food, everything my wife and I we are just surviving,’ he added.
‘I can’t save enough for surgery abroad. I need help.
‘I’m so worried about my kid. This is my baby. I just want him to be okay.’
