Boy, 9, loses kidney after falling from monkey bars at Bukit Batok playground
He was bleeding internally.
What started as an ordinary play session at the playground ended in major surgery for a nine-year-old boy, who lost a kidney after a fall in Bukit Batok.
Liu Junwen (transliteration) was playing with a group of neighbourhood friends on June 20 when he lost his grip on the monkey bars and fell, hitting his abdomen against a nearby plastic partition.
Speaking to reporters, Junwen's father, Mr Liu Zhiyuan (transliteration), 46, said the incident happened at around 6pm near Block 443D, Bukit Batok West Avenue 8.
Mr Liu recounted that his son came home crying and kept complaining of pain. Although there were no visible injuries on his body, he had noticed that Junwen's face looked pale.
Mr Liu, an air-conditioning technician, said: "I told him to rest, but he kept crying and said his stomach hurt. He kept asking for water too."
It was only later, when Junwen's 38-year-old mother, Madam Cheng Meiyan (transliteration), was bathing him, that she noticed his urine was tinged red.
Alarmed, they took him to National University Hospital (NUH) around 9pm.
"Doctors initially diagnosed him with internal bleeding, but could not identify the exact organ. They said the condition was critical and began a blood transfusion immediately," said Mr Liu.
A subsequent X-ray scan revealed a severe rupture in Junwen's right kidney.
Doctors determined that the situation was life-threatening and required urgent surgery.
The operation began at midnight and took about three to four hours. Surgeons found a 10cm-long tear in his kidney and were forced to remove the organ entirely.
Junwen is now recovering in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).
"I never imagined the injury would be so serious," said Mr Liu. "He's nine years old and usually knows how to take care of himself and stay safe. This accident came as a shock."
When Shin Min reporters visited the playground the next day, several children were seen playing. Most were accompanied by adults, though some older kids were on their own.
The monkey bars Junwen fell from are about 1.8m tall.
Mr Liu said he hopes the incident reminds other parents not to let their guard down. "No one expects something like this to happen, but it's always better to have an adult around when children are playing."