Ingested batteries

Case contributed by Ian Bickle
Diagnosis certain

Presentation

A troubled patient. Admits to ingesting batteries.

Patient Data

Age: 25 years
Gender: Female
x-ray

Two AA batteries project over the abdomen - one in the stomach and the other more distally in the small bowel.

Case Discussion

The ingestion of foreign bodies - batteries are a favorite it seems - occurs broadly in 2 key patient groups:

  1. young children - exploring the world
  2. challenged or troubled adults - a variety of reasons including depression, suicide attempts and attention seeking/cry for help

Images are taken to:

  1. confirm ingestion has taken place
  2. to see what has been ingested and where the objects lie

How to use cases

You can use Radiopaedia cases in a variety of ways to help you learn and teach.

Creating your own cases is easy.

Updating… Please wait.

 Unable to process the form. Check for errors and try again.

 Thank you for updating your details.