Most common dangerous item kids put in ears, nose or mouth

Nina Shapiro, MD Pediatric Otolaryngologist at UCLA, shares advice for parents on the most common dangerous items that kids put in their ears, nose, or mouth.
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Most common dangerous item kids put in ears, nose or mouth

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One of the most dangerous, and unfortunately, most common objects that a child can stick in their nose, ear, or throat is disk batteries. Disk batteries are everywhere. They are tiny. They are easy to swallow, and it's easy to swallow if your child does this. The unfortunate this that they cause rapid, permanent damage to the tissues, including inside of the ear. There are two reasons for this. One is that the battery can generate a little bit of an electrical current that can cause damage to the tissue. The other is the warm environment of the nose, the ear, or the mouth, can allow for some leakage of the battery fluid. It can cause permanent damage. If you think your child has stuck a battery up their nose, a battery in their ear, or swallowed a battery, they need to go to the emergency room right away. The damage is very quick and it can be permanent.

Nina Shapiro, MD Pediatric Otolaryngologist at UCLA, shares advice for parents on the most common dangerous items that kids put in their ears, nose, or mouth.

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Nina Shapiro, MD

Pediatric Otolaryngologist

Dr. Nina Shapiro is the Director of Pediatric Otolaryngology (ear, nose and throat) and an Associate Professor of Surgery at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.  As the first fellowship-trained pediatric otolaryngologist at the medical center since it was founded in 1955, her presence has put UCLA 'on the map' in her field.  

A graduate of Harvard Medical School and Cornell University College of Arts and Sciences, she also completed her residency training at Harvard.  She then went on to complete additional subspecialty training in pediatric otolaryngology at the Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children in London, and The Children's Hospital of San Diego.

A native of New York, Shapiro has been honored with several prestigious awards, including the American Society of Pediatric Otolaryngology Award for Clinical Research, the UCLA Division of Head and Neck Surgery Faculty Teaching Award, and the American Academy of Pediatrics Young Investigators Award.  She has also been named "Super Doctor" by Los Angeles Magazine, and has been listed in "Who's Who in America".  

She has authored over 70 peer-reviewed journal articles, has edited a pediatric otolaryngology textbook, and is the author of the parenting book Take a Deep Breath: Clear the Air for the Health of Your Child, releaseded in January 2012. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two children, and enjoys spending time with them more than anything else in the world.

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