For Immediate Release
Contact: [email protected]
May 6, 2026, Alexandria, Virginia—The American Academy of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery (AAO-HNS) applauds a landmark moment for child safety in households with the arrival of the first commercially available lithium coin-cell with protective features, generally referred to as a button battery by the medical community. This announcement by Energizer represents meaningful progress in a long and determined campaign by physicians, researchers, parent/patient advocates, and partner organizations to protect children from the devastating, yet completely preventable injuries caused when these batteries are accidently ingested and become lodged in the swallowing tube known as the esophagus.
For years, the AAO-HNS and a growing coalition of medical societies have sounded the alarm that coin-cell or button batteries can cause severe tissue injury in as little as two hours when swallowed or inserted into a child’s nose or ear.
The risk has grown alongside the proliferation of coin-cell or button batteries which are found in common household items such as remote controls, toys, holiday decorations, key fobs, and musical greeting cards. Unfortunately, ingestion events frequently go unwitnessed, parents may not know their child is in danger until it is too late.
Every 75 minutes, a child under the age of 18 presents to a U.S. emergency department with a battery-related complaint. This rate has more than doubled over the last decade. When a coin-cell or button battery lodges in the esophagus, its electrical current generates a rapid alkaline caustic burn that can destroy tissue. This may subsequently perforate the esophagus, erode into the trachea, or erode into major blood vessels which can lead to massive hemorrhage and death.
“Too many children have suffered severe injuries that have profoundly affected their ability to swallow, breathe, or speak—and some have tragically lost their lives. The clock starts ticking the moment a coin‑cell or button battery becomes lodged in the esophagus, and serious tissue injury can occur before a parent or caregiver is even aware. While we have reached an important step with a safer lithium coin‑cell technology brought to market, all battery manufacturers should act immediately to meet—or exceed—the new bar that has been set. Our collaborative work is not complete until all types of coin‑cell and button batteries no longer pose a risk of severe injury or death from accidental ingestion,” said Kris Jatana, MD, AAO‑HNS member, Surgical Director of Clinical Outcomes, and Professor of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery at Nationwide Children’s Hospital and The Ohio State University, a globally recognized medical expert on this issue for more than 15 years.
In October 2023, the AAO-HNS issued its Position Statement on Button and Coin Battery Technology, which has the endorsement or support of more than 13 leading medical organizations, calling on manufacturers to bring a coin-cell/button battery to market that will not cause severe tissue injury when lodged in the body while still adequately powering devices. The endorsing organizations include: AAO-HNS, American Academy of Pediatrics, American Broncho-Esophagological Association, American College of Surgeons, American Pediatric Surgical Association, American Society of Pediatric Otolaryngology, European Laryngological Society, European Society of Pediatric Otolaryngology, Global Injury Research Collaborative, NASPGHAN, Reese’s Purpose, Society for Ear Nose and Throat Advancement in Children, Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons, and The Triological Society.
Consumer Safety Alert: If anyone ingests or is exposed to a button battery, call the 24-hour National Battery Ingestion Hotline: 1-800-498-8666 immediately. For more information on what to do if your child swallows a battery, visit www.poison.org/battery.
Resources:
- AAO-HNS Position Statement: Button and Coin Battery Technology
- Chandler, Mark D et al. “Pediatric Battery-Related Emergency Department Visits in the United States: 2010-2019.” Pediatrics 150,3 (2022): e2022056709. doi:10.1542/peds.2022-056709
About AAO-HNS/F: The AAO-HNS/F is one of the world’s largest organizations representing specialists who treat the ears, nose, throat, and related structures of the head and neck. Otolaryngologist-head and neck surgeons diagnose and treat medical disorders that are among the most common affecting patients of all ages in the United States and around the world. Those medical conditions include chronic ear disease, hearing and balance disorders, hearing loss, sinusitis, snoring and sleep apnea, allergies, swallowing disorders, nosebleeds, hoarseness, dizziness, and tumors of the head and neck as well as aesthetic and reconstructive surgery and intricate micro-surgical procedures of the head and neck. The Academy has approximately 13,000 members. The AAO-HNS Foundation works to advance the art, science, and ethical practice of otolaryngology-head and neck surgery through education, research, and quality measurement.
