Image via WikipediaLithium cell batteries, some no larger than a nickel, are a growing hazard. As the tiny batteries become more popular and more powerful, doctors are seeing an increase in serious injuries and fatalities from swallowing incidents. The batteries, most measuring about 20 millimeters, can be found in everything from remotes to toys to singing greeting cards and other home electronics. Children have mistaken them for candy and adults for pills with disturbing results. Battery ingestion has been the cause of 13 deaths.
The risk posed by a cell battery when it's swallowed is not choking but that the moist lining of the gastrointestinal tract acts as a conductor and allows current to flow through the battery causing internal burns. The longer the battery remains in the body, the more severe the burns can become—lasting damage can occur within just two hours.
“It’s really a tight timeline, because a lot of these cases aren’t witnessed,” Dr. Toby Litovitz, lead author of two Pediatrics articles on the topic told The New York Times. “Children present with symptoms that are nonspecific, the parent doesn’t know the battery was ingested—that makes it difficult for the doctor to diagnose.”
Lifelong injuries from the batteries include damaged vocal cords and perforated gastrointestinal tracts that require feeding tubes or multiple surgeries. “The injuries are so much more serious,” Litovit told the newspaper. “It’s like drain opener or lye. It’s not something you want in the esophagus of your child.”
When a battery comes in contact with the GI tract, the tissue becomes black and discolored. We were able to simulate the damage by placing a 20-mm lithium battery on a slice of ham for 12 hours (see image).
According to the Pediatrics reports, children younger than six account for 68 percent of battery ingestion cases. Almost all fatalities involved 20-mm batteries, the size commonly used in remote controls. The researchers noted that in most of the cases involving children, the battery was not found loose but had been removed from a remote or other device by the child.
Not so with adults—they are more likely to pick up a loose battery, thinking it was a pill. Batteries intended for hearing aids were implicated in 36 percent of adult swallowing incidents.
The battery compartments on toys and musical books are required to be fastened by a screw. But this precaution is not mandated for remote controls and other electronic gadgetry intended for adults. The researchers recommend that manufacturers secure the battery compartments of all household products, not just toys. Until then, it's best to keep items that contain cell batteries out of the hands of children.
The risk posed by a cell battery when it's swallowed is not choking but that the moist lining of the gastrointestinal tract acts as a conductor and allows current to flow through the battery causing internal burns. The longer the battery remains in the body, the more severe the burns can become—lasting damage can occur within just two hours.
“It’s really a tight timeline, because a lot of these cases aren’t witnessed,” Dr. Toby Litovitz, lead author of two Pediatrics articles on the topic told The New York Times. “Children present with symptoms that are nonspecific, the parent doesn’t know the battery was ingested—that makes it difficult for the doctor to diagnose.”
Lifelong injuries from the batteries include damaged vocal cords and perforated gastrointestinal tracts that require feeding tubes or multiple surgeries. “The injuries are so much more serious,” Litovit told the newspaper. “It’s like drain opener or lye. It’s not something you want in the esophagus of your child.”
When a battery comes in contact with the GI tract, the tissue becomes black and discolored. We were able to simulate the damage by placing a 20-mm lithium battery on a slice of ham for 12 hours (see image).
According to the Pediatrics reports, children younger than six account for 68 percent of battery ingestion cases. Almost all fatalities involved 20-mm batteries, the size commonly used in remote controls. The researchers noted that in most of the cases involving children, the battery was not found loose but had been removed from a remote or other device by the child.
Not so with adults—they are more likely to pick up a loose battery, thinking it was a pill. Batteries intended for hearing aids were implicated in 36 percent of adult swallowing incidents.
The battery compartments on toys and musical books are required to be fastened by a screw. But this precaution is not mandated for remote controls and other electronic gadgetry intended for adults. The researchers recommend that manufacturers secure the battery compartments of all household products, not just toys. Until then, it's best to keep items that contain cell batteries out of the hands of children.
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