Mom Panics as Toddler Swallows Battery, Doctors Initially Suspect COVID-19 Infection

After her toddler accidentally swallowed a button battery, an Indianapolis mother warns families to be extra attentive to small kids.

Speaking to GMA, Ta'Sha Garrett said that her son, Mahziere, was his normal self - eating well, sleeping, playing - until that day when she picked up his bother from school and noticed something was off about Mahziere's breathing.

"He was really lethargic," she said and that everything about his 16-month-old was moving slow. He then slept on the car ride home. When they got home, Garrett said she heard her son whimpering. She went into the room to check on him. She told 13 WTHR that her son was laying on his back and slobber was coming out of his mouth.

Doctors first suspected COVID-19 infection

Worried, she and her mother rushed the child to the hospital. Suspecting that the toddler might have contracted coronavirus, he was tested for COVID-19 infection. Then took an X-ray which results revealed that the toddler had swallowed something.

The medical staff wasn't sure at first what the object was until they performed the surgery. Garrett said that up until the surgery, she was optimistic that it wasn't a button battery because she doesn't have watches around their house.

Dr. Fred Rescorla, a pediatric surgeon at IU Health Riley Hospital for Children said that the boy ingested a 22mm lithium battery. It was removed from the bottom of the boy's throat and is already beginning to burn his esophagus.

Speaking to 13 WTHR, he said that each year they treat around 10 - 15 cases of children swallowing a button battery. Just two years ago, he saw three similar cases of children swallowing batteries. Further, he said that once the battery gets stuck in the upper part of the chest, it discharges very quickly causing the esophagus to burn completely.

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Swallowing a battery causes a quick chemical reaction

Safe Kids explained that when a button battery gets swallowed, the saliva triggers a chemical reaction that can potentially burn the esophagus in as little as two hours. Some of the signs to watch out for include coughing, drooling, and feeling of discomfort.

If you think your child accidentally swallowed a battery, it is important to bring the child to the emergency room immediately. Never induce vomiting, and don't allow the child to eat or drink.

The actual surgery took 30 minutes, but anesthesiologists had issues getting an airway during the bronchoscopy since the esophagus has already started swelling from the burn caused by the battery.

Fortunately, the doctors were able to remove the button battery from the child's throat just in time, preventing further complications. He is now making full recovery. Dr. Rescorla said he is doing well but they want to make sure that his esophagus doesn't get scarring or narrowing.

The battery that Mahziere came from a watch which his mom suspects he got a hold of while he was at a relative house. She asks parents to be mindful and to pay extra attention to kids, especially small children.

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