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What to do if…
someone may have swallowed a button battery and they seem fine so far

Short answer

Treat this as an emergency even if they seem fine: go to A&E now. Call 999 if they have breathing trouble, collapse, heavy bleeding, or you need an ambulance.

Do not do these things

  • Do not “wait and see” for symptoms to appear.
  • Do not make them vomit and do not give laxatives.
  • Do not give food or drink except honey in the specific child-only situation below (and only if it does not delay leaving for A&E).
  • Do not assume it’s “just a coin” without being checked.
  • Do not probe the mouth, nose, or ear with fingers/tools to “check”.

What to do now

  1. Go to A&E immediately. Say clearly: “Possible button battery swallowed.”
  2. If they’re a child aged 12 months or older, and ingestion may have been within the last 12 hours, give honey while traveling to A&E (only if they can swallow and it won’t delay you).
    • Give 2 teaspoons (10 mL) of (ideally commercial) honey by mouth every 10 minutes, up to 6 doses.
    • Do not give honey to babies under 12 months.
    • If they’re choking, vomiting repeatedly, too sleepy to swallow safely, or refusing/struggling, skip honey and just go.
  3. Otherwise: keep them nil by mouth (no food or drink) unless A&E tells you differently.
  4. Bring the evidence. Take the device the battery came from, any spare/identical battery, and the packaging (it helps staff identify size/type).
  5. Note the timeline. Write down:
    • the last time you saw the battery or device intact
    • when you first noticed it missing
    • any coughing, gagging, drooling, vomiting, chest/neck discomfort (even if it passed)
  6. If you’re unsure it was swallowed, mention other likely locations (without delaying leaving). In small children, a button battery can also be lodged in the nose or an ear. Don’t poke or flush—just tell A&E it’s possible.
  7. Call 999 immediately if any of these occur: trouble breathing, noisy breathing, persistent choking/coughing, drooling you can’t control, vomiting blood, severe chest/neck/abdominal pain, extreme sleepiness, collapse, or a sudden change in voice.

What can wait

  • You do not need to confirm the battery’s exact size/type before leaving.
  • You do not need to search stools, try “home remedies”, or wait for symptoms to guide you.
  • You do not need to decide whether it “definitely happened” before getting urgent care—uncertainty is enough.

Important reassurance

It’s common for someone to look completely well at first. The urgency is because serious internal injury can happen quickly and may start before obvious symptoms appear. Acting now is the safest move.

Scope note

This is first-steps-only guidance to get you safely into urgent medical assessment. Hospital staff will decide what imaging, monitoring, and treatment are needed.

Important note

This is general information, not medical advice. If you think a button battery may have been swallowed, treat it as urgent and seek emergency care.

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