A MUM has shared a crucial choking warning after her baby was left hospitalised and needing tube fed when she swallowed a small button battery.
Emma Treharne was left shaken after her youngest daughter Wren began choking on what the mum-of-three believed to be a cucumber during dinner last month.
The 37-year-old managed to dislodge the food but after her ten-month-old continued to choke during the night, almost vomiting as she did.
Rushing her child to the GP in the morning, Emma from Newport, Shropshire was horrified to learn that the cause of her daughter’s discomfort was a pound-sized battery stuck in her throat.
The mum was allegedly first told by her GP that Wren’s coughing likely came from a sore throat after the cucumber incident, but was sceptical about this.
Emma’s GP then offered to call a children’s team at The Princess Royal Hospital in Telford, Shropshire who allegedly reaffirmed her health practitioner’s assessment.
Relying on her own intuition though, Emma insisted on an x-ray just to be sure, believing that a sore throat wouldn’t cause her baby to try and be sick.
However, in a moment of horror, Emma and partner Josh, 33, soon discovered that a “pound-sized” object was lodged in Wren’s throat and was rapidly burning her oesophagus.
The family was them rushed to Birmingham Children’s Hospital, where Wren underwent emergency surgery two hours later to remove the object – which turned out to be a button battery.
Despite the high risk of mortality, Wren miraculously survived the surgery but was later kept in for a further nine days and has now been left with a burnt throat.
Parents Emma and Josh are now having to tube feed their tot for the foreseeable future, while Wren continues on her road to recovery.
Emma subsequently took to social media on Sunday (9 JUL) to warn parents of the dangers that batteries pose to young children.
Relaying the whole story in her post, Emma added: “Just thought I’d write a status about two things – Mother’s intuition and the dangers of button batteries.
“My baby now has a severe burn in her oesophagus. We were in hospital for nine days. She is on a purely liquid diet and is tube fed for the foreseeable future.
“We were extremely lucky. Button batteries are found in all sorts of items. Musical books. Small remotes. Thermometers. Digital scales. Watches. Hearing aids.
“We’ll never know how Wren got hold of one. So please be careful about where these are stored.
“If your child ever swallows a button battery or you suspect they have please seek medical attention straight away.
“Follow your gut. I cannot fault the care given at Birmingham Children’s Hospital (BCH) and we have been very, very lucky to have amazing family and friends around us at this stressful time.”
The post received over 3,600 likes and more than 620 comments from users left horrified by the family’s ordeal.
Kathryn Jenks wrote: “How scary for you all, Emma. Well done for listening to your intuition and standing up for Wren and well done for being brave enough to share your story making others aware.
“Hope Wren bounces back quickly, big hugs to you all.”
Sharon Jayne Biggs said: “Oh, I’m so sorry to hear this – that must have been a nightmare, glad Wren is on the mend.
“Hope she will bounce back in no time – sending lots of hugs and love – BCH are excellent.”
Jordan Naomi commented: “That sounds horrendous to go through. It sounds like your intuition really saved her here.”
Helen Noble wrote: “Omg, thank goodness for your intuition and making yourself heard. I do hope little Wren recovers fully.”
Speaking today, Emma said: ““It’s been traumatic to say the least.
“Wren is on a pure milk diet through a tube to aid her recovery due to a burn in her oesophagus.
“We stayed in BCH for nine days in total. The battery was in for 24 hours and the outcome could have been very, very different – the reality is some children don’t make it.
It’s so, so important for people to be aware of the silent little killers.
“We have been lucky in the grand scheme of things but these little batteries are in such an array of household items and they are so dangerous.
“She was very lucky.”
Emma now aims to help campaign alongside the Harper-Lee Foundation to help create awareness of how dangerous batteries can be.
Dr Christopher Chiswell, Consultant in Public Health Medicine at Birmingham Women’s and Children’s NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Button batteries pose a real danger – one that sometimes hidden around the home.
“It’s absolutely vital you seek immediate medical help if you think your child has swallowed a button battery as it can have fatal consequences.
“Even a dud battery can rapidly burn through the wall of the gut, causing major internal injuries.
“We’d encourage all families to take a moment to think about things in their homes.
“Taking such steps like storing button batteries out of reach, buying products with safety screws that keep the battery compartment closed and being aware of objects that babies and toddlers can get hold of that contain batteries, such as car key fobs and musical greeting cards, can help prevent accidents.
“We also continue to call on manufacturers of batteries and products that use them to adopt the highest safety standards to keep children safe.”
“All of us at Birmingham Children’s Hospital wish Wren well in her recovery.”
Emma now aims to help campaign alongside the Harper-Lee Foundation to help create awareness of how dangerous batteries can be.
