A Fatal Case of Coin Battery Ingestion in an 18-Month-Old Child

Abstract The ingestion of extraneous substances is quite common in clinical practice; it usually befalls in the pediatric age, mostly between 6 months and 6 years. In most cases, complications do not emerge, and the prognosis is considered favorable. However, when a case of battery ingestion occurs, serious adverse events may develop. The ingestion of these components is a potential life-threatening event for children. In this article, we report the case of an 18-month-old child who died from hemorrhagic shock due to an aortoesophageal fistula caused by a 20 mm lithium button battery lodged in the esophagus. The child presented vomiting blood, and laboratory results revealed a severe anemization, which later led to death. The autopsy showed a coin battery located in the middle third of the esophagus as well as a transmural erosion of the esophageal wall with fistulization into the aortic wall. The histological examination revealed a severe necrosis of the esophageal and aortic walls in line with the junction between the aortic arch and the descending part.