A Tauranga baby boy may never speak or breath unassisted after the 8-month-old swallowed a button battery.
The infant’s mother Amanda Hacche says “baby Devon may never breath independently again and he will remain without a voice”.
Four days after ingesting the lithium-ion battery in December, baby Devon was admitted to the peadiatric intensive care unit at Starship hospital in Auckland. Hacche had earlier taken Devon to see a doctor at Accident and Emergency, who suspected bronchitis.
When swallowed, the battery reacted with saliva/gastric fluids and caused an electro-chemical reaction. In turn, it caused deep corrosion burns.
Devon has undergone at least five surgeries to remove and repair the burned tissue.
For more information, visit www.thebatterycontrolled.co.nz
