KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — A 12-year-old boy from Morristown will live the rest of his life with a BB gun pellet in his brain after an accident the weekend after Christmas.
Desray Mullins said she pulled into her driveway on Dec. 28 to find someone standing over her son, Gage, who was lying on the ground.
"He got shot in the face with a BB gun," said Mullins. She told 10News her son was able to go home Friday.
Doctors at Morristown-Hamblen Healthcare, UT Medical Center and East Tennessee Children's Hospital told Mullins the BB gun pellet was lodged in Gage's brain.
Mullins said the pellet went over Gage's left eye, rupturing the eye socket and breaking his optic bone. Health care professionals removed Gage's IV drip Thursday evening.
He did not lose his eyesight, but his left eye is pretty swollen right now.
The BB gun pellet will stay in Gage's brain for the rest of his life.
"I think there's less than a 2 percent chance that a metallic form body gets an infection," said UT Emergency Physician Ryan Green.
Green said people can easily go their whole lives with things like BBs in their bodies.
"A lot of times foreign bodies are left in the tissue," he said. "It's kind of a risk-benefit of will it be more harm to take it out or leave it in."
Mullins said Gage's neurologist at Children's said it's too risky to try to remove the BB from his brain.
While at the hospital, he was on two different types of IV antibiotics and Mullins said showed no sign of infection.
"For the most part it is safe and your body walls it off and it just stays there forever," said Green.
A study published in Pediatrics shows from 1990-2016, BB guns accounted for about 80 percent of firearm-related eye injuries.
Injuries like this are preventable.
"Be careful with what you do if you're playing with BB guns or guns or any sort of metal object," said Green. "Make sure it's used appropriately."
Mullins urges parents to make sure their kids are taught proper gun safety and are supervised when playing with BB guns or any type of dangerous toy.
This injury will affect Gage for the rest of his life.
"He is not allowed to play contact sports anymore," said Mullins. "He has anger inside of him, questions about why, why does this have to happen to me."
Gage will wear a medical bracelet and was on seizure watch.
Mullins is grateful for the support they've received from friends and from strangers. She said it's helping Gage and everyone get through his pain.
"I'm trying to stay strong for him because he needs that," said Mullins.
Gage spent the start of 2020 in the hospital. Now, he will be homebound for at least 30 days.