Button battery ingestion as a life threatening condition in pediatric practice

Foreign body ingestion is common, especially among children aged 6 months to 3 years old. The button battery represents about 2% of foreign bodies swallowed by children, relative frequency of its ingestion is increasing. About 30% of children with esophageal foreign body will be asymptomatic. Button batteries larger than 20 mm, if remains in the esophagus, may lead to gastrointestinal tract damages. The final damaging effect of disc battery follows the type of swollen battery. Disc batteries vary in size, chemical composition, voltage of electronic current. All these features implicate the final battery-induced tissue injuries. Up to the 12.6% patients under 6 years of age, with lithium coin cell lodged in the esophage, experience severe outcomes such as perforation, trachea-esophageal fistula, fistulization into major vessel, esophageal stricture, vocal cord paralysis, hemorrhage, pneumothorax, mediastinal emphysema, mediastinitis, and spondylodiscitis. In our report we presented the history of 1-year-old boy who ingested button battery, which was lodged in the lumen of esophage. The patient died despite the advanced treatment and immediate diagnosis. The aim of our report about disc battery ingestion was to emphasize the importance of this problem that may due to severe complications and is a life-threatening condition. It is important to draw caregivers attention to the fact that batteries in the hand of children may provoke serious consequences. It is necessary to educate the medical staff about the specifics of the problem, to implement the new (updated in 2016 and 2017) button battery diagnostic and treatment guideline.