A YOUNG professional athlete came dangerously close to death after accidentally swallowing a toothpick.

Bizarrely, he forgot that he'd swallowed it until it punctured the wall of his lower intestine and poked an artery.

His injuries could have eventually led to fatal bleeding and infection.

Because he didn't remember swallowing the toothpick and it took weeks and visits to three hospitals before doctors figured out where his symptoms were coming from.

The 18-year-old pro athlete had been on a trip to the southeastern states of America.

He was perfectly healthy when it began but during the course of the trip, he started suffering from belly pain, fever, nausea and diarrhoea that was so bad, he had to be emitted to A&E.

Doctors performed blood tests and a CT scan but didn't spot anything unusual so sent him back to his hotel after five hours.

Over the next two weeks, the guy's symptoms calmed down but his belly pain returned when he went travelling again.

This time, he also got back pain and found blood in his poo.

Another trip to A&E found that there was air and fluid in his large intestine but they weren't sure what was causing the symptoms - so suggested he go to see his doctor back home in New England.

Tests revealed that he had a bacterial infection in his blood.

When he had his colonoscopy, doctors were "stunned" to find a 5cm toothpick poking into the walls of his large intestine.

The guy hadn't reported swallowing anything unusual and none of the doctors had spotted anything on the scans.

Once they eventually managed to find it, however, doctors removed the toothpick using an endoscope - a long, flexible tube with a camera attached.

The toothpick had also injured an artery and once it was removed, the man experienced "life-threatening" bleeding.

The New England Journal of Medicine says that he was rushed into the operating room where he needed immediate, extensive surgery to stop the bleed.

After being told about the toothpick, the New England man did recall eating a "sandwich that did not go down so well" before he became sick, The New York Times reported.

The man stayed in the hospital for ten days and needed to take antibiotics for a month to treat his blood infection.

He also underwent a long-term rehab program to be able to get back in shape for his sport, and seven months after his injury, he played in his first professional game, the report said.