Mar 12, 2009 11:34 pm US/Eastern
I-Team: Common Battery Nearly Kills Child
IPSWICH (WBZ) ―
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An X-ray showed the battery lodged in Hazel's throat.
WBZ
You should be aware of a common household item that can pose a serious health threat, especially to young children.
An Ipswich family is lucky that their child is alive and wants other families to know about the danger.
"She is such a bright light, and I just can't imagine the world without her," said Amanda Donovan.
She is talking about her daughter Hazel and how their lives almost took a tragic turn at Thanksgiving.
HAZEL'S STORY
"Hazel was 9 months old and she had been sick, you know, with a fever."
Visit: Hazel's Web Page
What doctors initially thought was the croup turned out to be much more serious.
An X-ray showed an object lodged in Hazel's throat.
"It was the same size as a nickel so that's what we thought it was," said Hazel's father, Jamie.
Hazel was rushed to
Children's Hospital in Boston.
"I could tell that everything changed right then and there… like they just started accelerating us as quickly as they could to get us into the emergency room." Jamie said.
THE BUTTON BATTERY
It wasn't a nickel in Hazel's esophagus; it was what's called a button battery.
The small discs are found in everything from watches to cameras to toys and popular greeting cards.
How dangerous are they when swallowed?
"In less than five hours, they can completely erode through the esophagus" says
Dr. Mark Puder, the Children's Hospital surgeon who operated on Hazel.
In a moist environment, button batteries leak and continue to send out an electrical current.
We placed a battery in a glass of water for 3 hours.
"It can erode back into the major vessels coming from the heart or it can go through the breathing tube and make a hole which can be fatal," said Dr. Puder.
"SHE JUST STOPPED BREATHING"
Even though doctors were able to remove the battery, Hazel was still in for the fight of her life.
"Her trachea had just closed on her, her esophagus collapsed and she just stopped breathing," said Dr. Puder.
She almost died.
The tiny button batteries are showing up in more products with potentially deadly consequences.
BATTERIES AND KIDS
In 2007, 3,900 people called poison hotlines throughout the country to report swallowing one of these batteries.
Read: What To Do If A Battery Is Swallowed
65-percent were children under the age of 6.
"They're exactly the wrong size," said Boston product liability attorney James Swartz.
He believes battery makers should eliminate this particular size,
"A lot of these batteries are just large enough so they won't pass through the airway and small enough to get lodged in the esophagus."
HAZEL'S BATTERY
Where did Hazel get a hold of a button battery?
From a remote control to the DVD player.
"The battery compartments for these devices need to be secure with screws or some other devices so that these things don't come loose," said Swartz.
THE RECOVERY
Today, Hazel is doing much better, but still has trouble eating solid foods.
She will need several more operations to widen her esophagus.
But the Donovans are grateful that their beautiful daughter is alive and they pray no other family has to go through this.
"We want to get the word out about how dangerous they are, but also how prevalent they are," said Amanda.
And Jamie?
"At the very least, more explicit warnings and safer batteries."
Most swallowed batteries will move through the digestive system without harm.
But in the cases where they do get lodged, the only way to know is by getting an X-ray.
WHAT'S NEXT?
The I-Team checked with the battery industry, known as NEMA.
Read: Battery Industry Statement
They told us they are working to address the ingestion issue by placing warning notices on batteries and working to improve construction and safety.
And the good news, all toys with these batteries must be in compartments that can only be opened with a tool or key.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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