Parents warned after battery death of baby boy at Christmas

Parents are being warned about the danger of button batteries after the death of a boy over Christmas.

Which? is warning parents to take care that all products that use button batteries are properly secured or kept out of reach of children.

One-year-old Hughie McMahon died after swallowing a button battery from a toy bear.

Many toys and home gadgets use button batteries and most are small enough to be swallowed. Some can get stuck in a chid’s throat.

Once a battery like this touches a wet surface – such as a child’s mouth throat or stomach – it starts to generate a current and this can create the highly corrosive caustic soda.

Caustic soda is the active ingredient in drain unblocking fluid and powders.

Hughie McMahon swallowed an LR44 alkaline battery from a Vtech Swing & Sing toy monkey, and doctors at Glasgow’s Queen Elizabeth University Hospital found his blood had become acidic. A hole had burned into his heart, reports Which?

If you think your child has swallowed a button battery, take them straight to A&E.

Which? says if you’re not sure if a child has swallowed a battery, look out for symptoms:

  • Vomiting fresh, bright red blood
  • Developing a cough, gag or drooling a lot
  • Appearing to have a stomach upset or being sick
  • Throat, chest or stomach pain
  • Tiredness and lethargy
  • Loss or reduced appetite
  • Being quieter or not themselves.

Which? says if your child is choking on a button battery, encourage them to cough it out, but if they’re unable, lean them forward and give five sharp back blows, checking after each one to see if you can pick the battery out of their mouth.

If it’s a toddler or baby, rest them over your knees while supporting their head and back, and give five sharp blows on their back using the heel of your hand.

Call 999 and keep repeating the back blows until help arrives.

For more first aid guidance, visit the St John Ambulance website.

Which? says to check all toys have lockable battery compartments.

Items like key fobs, flameless candles, musical greetings cards, digital scales and remote controls should be kept away from children.

Batteries should be kept high up or in a locked cupboard and used batteries should be disposed of carefully.

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