Two-year-old's button battery death sparks warning

Button batteries are found in a range of household products including remote controls, kitchen scales and toys

Doctors are warning of the dangers of button batteries to young children after the death of a two-year-old girl.

Harper-Lee Fanthorpe died in hospital in Stoke-on-Trent in May after swallowing batteries from a remote control.

An inquest found acid from the battery burned through her food pipe and into a major artery.

Consultant paediatrician Anna Pigott said the case would stay in the hearts and minds of hospital staff.

Harper-Lee was admitted to the Royal Stoke University Hospital on 23 May after she started vomiting blood at home.

Her inquest on 14 June heard surgeons discovered a hole in the two-year-old's oesophagus. During surgery she suffered cardiac arrhythmia and died.

Dr Pigott said staff fought as hard as they could to save Harper-Lee but her bleeding was too extensive.

North Staffordshire coroner Andrew Barkley recorded her death as an accident.

As well as remote controls, button batteries are used in a huge range of products from watches to toy and kitchen scales.

There have been other cases of deaths or very serious injuries from children swallowing them in the UK, Dr Pigott said.

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Parents should be aware of symptoms such as drooling and coughing up blood as well as a child pointing to their throat or tummy, she added.

Dr Anna Pigott said medics 'fought as hard as we possibly could' to save Harper-Lee Fanthorpe at the Royal Stoke University Hospital

Staffordshire Safeguarding Children Board has issued an urgent warning and said parents should take their child straight to A&E or call 999 if they think they have swallowed a battery.

Stoke-on-Trent City Council said it was a "tragic accident" and it would be working to raise awareness of the dangers of button batteries.