Reed diffusers: Household risk

• If you use air fresheners, they must be in some sort of sealed container so that children can't eat or drink them.

Case 1: Two brothers, both toddlers, got into the reed diffuser oil and were gagging. Their grandmother called her poison center. The poison center referred the boys into the nearest emergency room due to the risk of aspiration (inhaling a foreign substance into the respiratory tract) and breathing problems. The poison center was in contact with the pediatric emergency physician to discuss these toxicity concerns and advised 6 hours of observation followed by a chest x-ray prior to discharge. Both boys had possible pneumonitis (inflammation of the lungs) on their chest x-rays and were admitted to the hospital. After 24-hours in the hospital they were stable and were sent home to follow up with their pediatrician. Two days later they still had what appeared to be pneumonitis on their x-rays but were doing well. Four days later one of the boys spiked a fever and had a slight cough. Both boys were evaluated by the pediatrician that day. A few days later their mother reported to the poison center that the fever had resolved and both looked fine at the doctor's office that day.

Case 2: A 14-month-old girl spilled reed diffuser oil all over herself in the bathroom and was constantly coughing. Her parents called their poison center. The poison center referred the child in to the nearest emergency room due to the risk of aspiration (inhaling a foreign substance into the respiratory tract) and breathing problems. The pediatric emergency physician called a poison center and was advised to observe the child for respiratory difficulty for 6 hours and to get a chest x-ray prior to discharging her home. Three hours later the child still had a cough in the emergency room, but it was less frequent. She had also developed a rash where the oil had gotten on her skin. The emergency physician reported that there were some changes on her initial chest x-ray but that she had had an upper respiratory infection prior to the exposure. However, a second x-ray 6-hours after the child got into the reed diffuser oil showed new changes, and the child was breathing fast and had a high fever. She was placed on antibiotics and admitted to the hospital. Twenty-four hours later the child was doing much better. She was in no respiratory distress and her fever had resolved. She was discharged to home, to follow-up with her pediatrician.