E-ISSN: 2149-6048 ISSN: 2149-5807
The Evaluation of Poisoning Cases who Applied to the Adıyaman University Training and Research Hospital Pediatrics Emergency Department
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Original Article
VOLUME: 13 ISSUE: 4
P: 166-171
December 2014

The Evaluation of Poisoning Cases who Applied to the Adıyaman University Training and Research Hospital Pediatrics Emergency Department

Eurasian J Emerg Med 2014;13(4):166-171
DOI: 10.5152/jaem.2014.177
Çapan Konca 1
Mehmet Tekin 2
Mustafa Gökhan Usman 3
Yeliz Genç 2
Mehmet Turgut 2
1. Pediatric Intensive Care Unit of Department of Pediatrics, Adiyaman University Faculty of Medicine, Adıyaman, Turkey
2. Department of Pediatrics, Adiyaman University Faculty of Medicine, Adıyaman, Turkey
3. Department of Family Medicine, Adiyaman University Faculty of Medicine, Adıyaman, Turkey
No information available.
No information available
Received Date: 08.03.2014
Accepted Date: 11.06.2014
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ABSTRACT

Objective:

To investigate the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of intoxications in our region, to illuminate measures, and to contribute to the national survey.

Material and Methods:

Medical records of 366 cases who were diagnosed as intoxications during 2013 in the pediatric emergency department were reviewed retrospectively.

Results:

A total of 80,833 patients were admitted to pediatric emergency department in 2013. The ratio of poisoning cases to all pediatric emergency admissions was 0.4%; 184 (50.2%) cases were female, 182 (49.8%) cases were male, and the mean age was 5.7±1.4 years. Also, 56.8% of patients were under 5 years old. Most (95.7%) cases were accidental, while 4.3% of them were suicides. The common causes of intoxication were medications and scorpion envenomation. The most common pharmacological agents that caused intoxication were analgesics and antidepressants. The most common clinical findings were vomiting (24.3%), nausea (20.2%), abdominal pain (13.6%) and headache (11.4%). Supportive treatments were applied to 90.1% of patients, and antidotes were used in 4.9% of patients. A patient with a scorpion sting died due to cardio-pulmonary insufficiency.

Conclusion:

In our region, the most common poisoning agents were drugs and scorpion stings. Education of parents may decrease acute intoxication cases causing morbidity and mortality.