Coin/Button Cell Battery Ingestion Hazard Mitigation Strategies
A Symposium at the World Health Organization’s 11th World Conference on Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion in Wellington, New Zealand, 1 – 4 October 2012.

Serious and fatal injuries to children caused by coin/button cell battery ingestion have dramatically increased in recent years. If a cell lodges in the esophagus, the electrical current hydrolyzes body fluid leading to hydroxide burns in as few as 2 hours. Injuries include tracheo/aortal-esophageal fistulas, necrosis, stricture, and vocal cord paralysis. Diagnosis and treatment can be difficult, long-term, and painful.

Join scholars and engineers from around the world in presenting innovative solutions to eliminate the hazards posed by the ingestion of coin/button cell batteries. Our symposium will address the detection and treatment of battery-related injuries and mitigation strategies such as ingestion deterrents, preventing current flow, or cell deactivation strategies that eliminate the hazards of electrical current if cells are swallowed.

Send abstracts to jmidgett@cpsc.gov by 1 March 2012. Conference information is available at http://www.conference.co.nz/worldsafety2012.