As a parent, you’re constantly on the lookout for threats to your children. One danger you may not have considered: button batteries. They’re the small, round type of batteries that come in musical greeting cards, electric candles, talking books, hearing aids and flashing jewelry or clothes.
While button batteries are useful, the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) calls them “the most dangerous form of foreign body ingestion commonly encountered in pediatrics.”
Why button batteries are especially harmful
Children love putting foreign objects in their mouths. It’s part of how they experience the world, especially as an infant and toddler. Swallowing button batteries can have serious consequences, ranging from choking to rare complications such as catastrophic aortoesophageal fistula.
The Children’s Hospital of Pennsylvania describes why button batteries are so harmful: “First, it can create electrical current. Second, it can put pressure on sensitive tissues and third, it can leak harmful chemicals from the battery. And all of these can cause burns to the throat or the stomach. The burn can be so intense after only several hours of exposure that the voice box can be destroyed or internal bleeding can occur.”
Who is legally responsible for button battery injuries?
No parent can watch their child every second of the day. It only takes a moment for a clever toddler to pry apart a remote control or greeting card. If your child swallows a button battery and suffers harm as a result, who’s legally at fault?
Depending on the circumstances of your case, your lawyer may be able to file a lawsuit against the manufacturer of the button battery or the product in which it was used. Products liability cases provide legal recourse for people injured by dangerous products. Plaintiffs may argue that the product was inherently unsafe for normal use, that the product was defective or that there was a failure to provide adequate warning. For example, toys for infants and toddlers should have child-proof battery compartments to prevent further issues.
Not every case of button battery ingestion will support a lawsuit. However, it’s always worth talking to an attorney about your case.
Since button batteries pose an extreme risk of harm to children, make sure to inspect all toys, remotes and other electronic objects before giving them to your child. If the battery compartment isn’t secure, it’s not a risk worth taking.
Talk to an Ohio personal injury lawyer today
If a manufacturer’s negligence is responsible for your child’s injuries, I’ll Make Them Pay!® Call me today at 877.483.2298 for a consultation, and we’ll discuss your claim. If you have a case, my firm will fight to make sure your child’s interests are represented.
