I was paralysed after the contraceptive implant got stuck in my arm – 5 years on doctors still can’t find it
A WOMAN has been left partially paralysed after a contraceptive implant became stuck in her arm for five years.
Danielle Jarrett, 27, went to have the tiny plastic rod replaced in 2019 but was told it had sunk too deep and needed to be removed in hospital.
Surgeons spent two hours trying to extract it but failed.
“When I got home, my arm felt completely numb – like that Harry Potter scene where his bones are taken out and it’s all floppy,” said Danielle, from Dartford, Kent.
“I later found out I had nerve damage, and my left arm was paralysed.”
The insurance case handler couldn’t cut food, wash her hair, or zip up her jacket.
Physiotherapy helped her regain 75 per cent of her movement, but she still only has 25 per cent of the feeling in her arm – and the implant remains inside her.
“I’ve had to adapt to doing things differently,” she said.
“I’m grateful it’s improved, but the sensation will never come back fully. And I’ll never have the implant again!”
Danielle’s ordeal began when she returned to her GP in May 2019 to replace her implant, which prevents pregnancy by releasing hormones into the bloodstream.
The 4cm rod is designed to last three years before being swapped out.
Her doctor referred her to a specialist, who couldn’t remove it, and she was booked for surgery at St Thomas’ Hospital in London in January 2020.
“It was supposed to be a quick ten-minute job, like when I had the first one taken out,” Danielle said.
“But after two hours of digging around, they told me it was impossible to get to.”
When Danielle got home, her arm went from numb to useless.
It still makes me anxious knowing it’s in there
Danielle Jarrett
“I couldn’t feel my ring finger, then my whole forearm, and by the next day, I couldn’t move my hand.”
A&E doctors confirmed nerve damage.
For weeks, she relied on her mum for everyday tasks and underwent months of physiotherapy.
Risks of the contraceptive implant
The contraceptive implant is very safe, but there are some risks including:
- Infection where the implant is put in – this can lead to swelling and pain at the site of the implant
- The implant moving out of place, usually just a few centimetres away from where it was put in (but in some cases it can travel further)
If you think you have an infection or the implant has moved out of place then contact a GP or sexual health clinic.
Rarer, more serious risks include:
- A blood clot
- Ectopic pregnancy in the rare case that the implant fails
Though she’s regained some strength and movement, doctors have warned the implant, now inactive, may have migrated further into her body.
“It still makes me anxious knowing it’s in there,” she said. “I don’t like going out alone in case someone bumps into me.”
Despite her struggles, Danielle is trying to stay positive.
“I’ve come a long way since it happened, and I can do most things now,” she said.
“But I’ll stick to the pill from now on – I’m never getting the implant again!”
Meanwhile, another woman said her implant moved to her lung, where it lived and caused serious damage for six years.
Another said her implant migrated and ended up lodged in her heart.