The button cell batteries, present in toys, watches or even remote controls, can be a mortal danger if they are swallowed by children. It is then necessary to act very quickly, underlines the High Authority of Health (HAS), which publishes new recommendations on Wednesday.
If actions have already been taken to raise awareness of this “potentially fatal risk” especially for young children, “we see an increase in France in cases of ingestion of large diameter batteries” (at least 15 millimeters), notes the HAS in one communicated joint with the Society for Clinical Toxicology (STC).
Burn Hazards
When swallowed, button batteries can get stuck in the esophagus, the tube that connects the mouth to the stomach. They can then cause, by their electrical action in this humid environment, a burn whose severity increases considerably after the second hour.
“The speed of reaction of each is essential because, even in case of doubt, the ingestion of a button battery constitutes an emergency”, underline the HAS and the STC.
But, until then, no recommendation defined “precisely” the care of children in France, which could lead to heterogeneous practices on the territory.
Leave the child fasting
For the general public, it is now recommended to leave the child on an empty stomach without trying to make him vomit and to call 15 or a poison control center, recalls the press release. For professionals, the HAS and the STC note, for example, that the chest X-ray is the reference examination for confirming the ingestion of a battery and determining its location.
A battery stuck in the esophagus is a life-threatening emergency, which requires an upper digestive endoscopy “without delay”. If the pile is in the stomach, a digestive endoscopy is sometimes necessary, specifies the press release.
Make stacks smaller than 15mm
To the public authorities, the HAS and the STC suggest regular long-term information on the risks of swallowing a button battery, targeting the general public, early childhood and health professionals.
They also recommend that they “work with the manufacturers responsible for placing button batteries on the market, including at European level, to promote the manufacture and use of button batteries with a diameter of less than 15 mm, but also to secure devices powered by these batteries.