Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
SALT. LAKE CITY — It was one of the most horrible experiences any parent can have — Erica and KC McMillan's son ended up in the emergency room, without a clear idea of what was wrong.
They are now sharing their story in hopes of preventing other parents from dealing with the same thing.
In 2022, their 1-year-old son Luke swallowed a button battery — a small, round disk the size of a larger button — from a toy in the house. The parents were away from home at the time, and Luke's four older brothers, as well as the adult caring for everyone, were unsure how it happened.
Two months of trips to doctors did not help, with Luke being diagnosed with everything from acid reflux to an ear infection. When an X-ray was finally ordered, doctors could see the problem: Luke had swallowed a battery that became stuck in his esophagus. This could have fatal consequences if it was left there.
"They told us, 'You need to take him to the emergency room ... something is stuck in there, and it needs to come out,'" said Erica McMillan, Luke's mother. "We were praying a lot for him. (His brothers) were praying a lot for him."
"They found out it was a button battery ... and they were surprised that he was alive," said KC McMillan, Luke's father.
Thursday morning, the McMillans and Dr. Laurie Baumann, a pediatric trauma surgeon at Primary Children's Hospital, spoke about the importance of everyone checking toys, looking for small pieces that can be swallowed by toddlers like Luke.
As children's toys have become more technologically advanced, the pieces needed to build and power them are getting smaller and smaller. As such, batteries and magnets fall out of packaging or from the toys themselves, ready for the hands of toddlers.
A teenager or adult could swallow these items, and it would get to their stomach, but it would eventually leave the body a couple of days later. Toddlers, with their much-smaller organs, have to deal with a series of problems with magnets pinching pieces of the intestines together, batteries causing problems for their aorta, or having an activated battery in the esophagus, which can create a hole that can be fatal.
Baumann said surgeons typically see an average of two children a month who have had a dangerous interaction with a toy. During the holiday season, she said the numbers greatly increase. Nationally, more than 150,000 children under 12 visit emergency rooms as a result of an issue with a toy, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.
"It's important to know the dangers that exist," Baumann said. "Depending on their age or if you have these things in your home, we just need to know how to take care of (toys), how to keep them and store them and what to look out for."
Baumann said there is no culprit regarding children ingesting button batteries and/or magnets. This is not a situation where an unneeded piece of a toy is a choking hazard. Batteries and magnets are necessary for some toys and electronics, so educating the population is key.
Luke now looks the part of a typical 3-year-old. He quickly moves from place to place and wants to be up, then down, then in Mom's arms, then Dad's.
The battery he swallowed happened to be covered with black tape, which prevented a worse problem. He still deals with the repercussions of the swallowed button battery, such as an occasional need for a dilated esophagus after it becomes constricted — or tightened up — preventing him from swallowing any food.
Overall, though, he is OK. But without awareness, his parents know other children will go through the same thing — so they have some advice.
"I wouldn't wish this on anyone," Erica McMillan said. "Just be aware of what you're buying ... and trust your gut, right? Your mother's intuition."
