The Prognostic Factors of Aluminum Phosphide Poisoning in Urmia: A-five-years Cross-sectional Study

Aluminum phosphide is a highly toxic fungicide. It causes such severe adverse effects as cardiac arrhythmias, metabolic acidosis, acute renal failure, shock, and even death. Therefore, this study investigated the prognostic factors of aluminum phosphide poisoning.

In this cross-sectional study, all hospitalized patients due to aluminum phosphide poisoning admitted to the poisoning center at Taleghani Hospital, Urmia City, Iran, from 2015 to 2019 were evaluated. The demographics characteristics, clinical findings, and laboratory profiles were retrospectively studied by an investigator-made checklist and evaluated concerning the explored patients’ treatment outcomes. Then, the obtained data were analyzed by descriptive and analytical statistics using SPSS V. 16.

The present study investigated 134 patients (96 males & 38 females). The mortality rate was equal to 29.8% (22.4% males & 7.4% females) in the study patients. The research patients’ Mean±SD age was 28.6±11.5) years. The Mean±SD ingestion amount of aluminum phosphide was 1.48±1.06 g (min=0.2 g, max=15 g). Nausea and vomiting with 119 (88.8%), hypotension: 89 (66.4%), vertigo: 80 (59.7%), and sinus tachycardia: 74 (55.2%) were the most signs and symptoms in the study patients, respectively. Statistically significant relationships (P<0.05) were found between the patients’ treatment outcomes and white blood cells, direct bilirubin, Hco3, base excess, magnesium, Aspartate Aminotransferase, Alanine Aminotransferase, Blood Urea Nitrogen, creatinine, blood glucose, pH, prothrombin time, and the international normalized ratio. Furthermore, significant relationships were detected between the patients’ treatment outcomes and leukocytosis, hypokalemia, hyperglycemia, and hypoglycemia (P<0.05).

Such prognostic factors as demographics characteristics, clinical findings, laboratory profiles, and electrolytes could be used as good indices of the severity of toxicity in patients; accordingly, such data are beneficial for the proper management of patients by healthcare providers. Therefore, prognostic factors should be considered in the diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up stages for these patients.