P.E.I. mom cautions parents after toddler accidentally swallows live battery

A P.E.I. family is warning others about the dangers of small batteries after their two-year-old daughter was taken to the IWK Health Centre in Halifax for emergency surgery after swallowing a battery.

Her mom, Alicia Roberts, said she was sitting on the couch with her daughter Harley waiting for a call from a family member when the toddler told her mom she thought she swallowed a coin Tuesday.

Roberts had called P.E.I.'s 811 telehealth service and was told that if it was a coin, it would pass on its own. But Harley quickly became lethargic and started throwing up throughout the night. 

"She was curling her knees up to her stomach almost like she was in pain or really uncomfortable and she was crying, like little bits of crying probably two to three times every hour Tuesday night," she said. "So I knew there was something not right but I was still 'maybe she's just not comfortable from this coin.'"

The family took her to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Charlottetown the next day and after two x-rays, found out Harley had managed to swallow a large button battery, the type used for some kinds of remote controls.

Severe damage to insides 

After that, Harley was rushed to the IWK in Halifax to get the battery removed where doctors discovered that the battery was still live and lodged between the walls of Harley's esophagus and the entry way to her stomach. It was also close to her heart.

"As soon as I found out it was a battery, it's kind of like panic mode," Roberts said.

"Time is of the essence and the longer the battery is in there the more damage it's going to do." 

Doctors managed to remove the battery during an operation but they discovered that it had severely burned her esophagus. Battery acid had also burned the entire area where it was lodged.

Harley couldn't eat or drink anything and hasn't been able to do either since Tuesday night. Doctors have since set up an IV to get Harley some nutrients.

There will also be a dye test to see where holes might have been burned inside her.

A caution for others

Through it all, Roberts said it's been a difficult lesson. "We didn't know it was a battery," she said. 

"There was no reason for us to suspect it was a battery because there normally isn't batteries around our house like that but you just never know what your kid is going to find." 

The family is unsure about what recovery will look like for Harley until further test results come back. Roberts said they'll be at the hospital over Christmas and possibly for some time after that.

Roberts said she wants to share Harley's story to warn other parents about the dangers of loose batteries. 

"As much as you think 'my child won't do that', or 'that wouldn't happen to me', well yes, in a split second whether they are on your lap or right beside you or in the next room, it can happen so quick."

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