Epidemiological and clinical pattern of acute poisoning in children: A hospital based study in northern Iran

Pediatric poisoning is a common and predictable cause of morbidity worldwide. It is necessary to determine the pattern of this problem in order to take preventive measures. The aim of this study was to determine the epidemiological and clinical pattern of children poisoning.

This cross-sectional, descriptive-analytical study was carried out on 408 children hospitalized due to poisoning in Amirkola Children’s Hospital from 2008 to 2013. The hospital information system was used to recognize children with a definite diagnosis of poisoning. Individual and epidemiological information of the participants was extracted from their medical records and analyzed.

Out of 408 poisoning cases, 97% of cases were unintentional, 55.4% of subjects were male, and the mean age of the children was 36.27±2.8 months. Totally, 56.6% of the children were residing in urban areas (P=0.004), and most cases (56.12%) suffered from medication poisoning. Moreover, 30.4% of them had no abnormal clinical manifestations, and the most common manifestation was loss of consciousness (29%). Besides, 61% of medical measures taken included the prevention of gastrointestinal absorption of the poison. The mean hospital stay duration was 2.7±2.1 days, and the consequence of poisoning was treatment and discharge in 68.3% of the cases and 1 death (0.2%).

The most common cause of pediatric poisoning was medications. In order to prevent poisoning in children, it is necessary to inform parents and other carers about the proper storage and use of medications, and in case of poisoning, urgent referral of the child to the centers.