Surgeons hope to remove most of the needles, but some are as long as 2 inches, and some are stuck in his lungs, so they will wait until the child's breathing improves.
But even when his breathing improves, some cannot be removed because they are too close to vital organs or actually inside them.
The boy's mother brought him to a hospital saying he was complaining of pain. (really?)
Three days later, after X-rays revealed some of the needles. (three days?)
The mother told police she doesn't know how the needles got inside her son, but police have opened an investigation.
The boy's father, Gessivaldo Alves, seems to have an interesting theory.
He believes his son could have been a victim of a black magic ritual.
Alves said he visited the home where the boy was living with his mother and stepfather and found unspecified items that could be used for black magic,
Doctors think the needles were stuck into the child's body one by one because it would have been impossible for him to swallow them.
"We think it could have only been by penetration because we found needles in the lung, the left leg and in different parts of the thorax. It couldn't have been by ingestion," the doctor said.
But, doctors found no signs of outside wounds on the boy, however, X-ray images (seen above) clearly showed some of the needles inside his body.
The police inspector in charge of the case, Helder Fernandes Santana, told Brazil's O Globo newspaper that is was no doubt someone stuck the needles into the boy, but said he had no suspect and did not disclose a motive.
"It's clear someone inserted the needles, that's for sure," he said in comments published Wednesday. "We still don't know who did this."
The boy is in intensive care, but doctors say his condition has improved since he was admitted.
UPDATE:
Brazilian police are hunting for the stepfather who is suspected of pushing the needles into his two-year-old stepson, possibly as part of a "black magic" ritual.
Police said that stepfather had disappeared and they are treating this as an attempted homicide.
It looks like the dad may have been right after all.
