Eight-month-old Devon Hacche has been a patient in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Auckland's Starship Children's Hospital since December 19th last year after swallowing a lithium-ion button battery.

Devon's parents were unaware that their son had ingested the dangerous object and despite having a runny nose, grumpy temperament and mild wheezing, Amanda Hacche's little boy displayed no signs that anything more sinister was afoot.

However when her child's symptoms worsened,the concerned mum brought her son to hospital where an X-ray revealed the infant had a battery lodged in his oesophagus.

Having suffered serious burns which left a 5cm hole in Devon's trachea, it is now uncertain as to whether he will ever be able to breathe or speak unassisted.

Opening up about the tragedy. Devon's heartbroken mum said: "It turns out this is one of the most damaging and dangerous things that my beautiful boy could have ever ingested as they react with the saliva/gastric fluids and cause an electro-chemical reaction, which causes deep and extremely fast corrosion burns into soft human tissue."
 


Devon has undergone five surgeries in six weeks as surgeons desperately try to repair the burnt tissue.

According to the NZ Herald, the little boy underwent "one harrowing eight-hour operation where his heart and lungs were stopped and he was kept alive by a cardiac bypass machine."

Commenting on her son's prognosis, Amanda said: "Devon may never breathe independently again and he will remain without a voice – he can not make sound without vocal cord function."

Our hearts go out to the Hacche family and we wish baby Devon all the very best in his recovery.
 

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