ER Visits Double with Swallowed Battery Hazards Among Young Kids
As our technology devices keep getting smaller and smaller, so do many of the batteries that power them up. A special concern to emergency room doctors is an increase in the number of tots swallowing the small, flat, so-called “button” batteries that can have tragic results.
Every three hours a child shows up in a U.S. emergency room with a battery that’s been swallowed or placed in the mouth, ears or nose, a new study shows. Most cases involve a child under the age of 5, with incidents peaking around 2. That number of cases is almost double what it was 20 years ago, according to the report just published in Pediatrics.
The main culprits are “button batteries,” which account for almost 85 percent of the ER visits, researchers found. These flat, coin-shaped batteries are used in a wide variety of electronic devices, from toys, remote controls, calculators, miscellaneous gadgets, hearing aids, and watches. Many of the toys youngster play with are powered up by these tiny batteries, making the danger even greater.
Although most kids seen by ER doctors are pronounced healthy and sent home, some of the newer batteries can cause serious damage if they lodge in the throat, says the study’s lead author Dr. Gary Smith, director of the Center for Injury Research and Policy at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio.
When kids get 3-volt 20 mm lithium batteries lodged in their esophagus, the moisture there can spark a microcurrent, Smith explains in the article. “That will lead to cell death and eventually burn a hole right through the esophagus,” Smith says. “And that will lead to long term scarring and stricture. Even worse, there are some cases where it eroded right into the aorta and the child bled to death. These are horrific, horrific outcomes that need to be prevented.”
What’s especially scary is that this can all happen quickly, he emphasizes.“Serious damage can occur in less than two hours,” Smith says. “If parents have any suspicion that their child has swallowed a button battery – even if they’re not sure – they need to take the child immediately to the emergency room to get an X-ray to see if the button battery is stuck in the esophagus... This can’t wait till the next morning,” says Smith.
The new study was based on nationally representative data collected over a 20 year period (1990 to 2009) from approximately 100 U.S. hospitals. When the researchers extrapolated the results to include all U.S. hospitals, they determined that there were nearly 66,000 emergency department visits by children under age 18 for issues involving a battery.
While there are design considerations being made to create battery compartments with child safety in mind, parents can take some precautionary matters now to protect their youngster. One simple solution is to tape battery compartments closed.
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