The study of etiological and demographic characteristics of acute household accidental poisoning in children - a consecutive case series study from Pakistan

BACKGROUND To determine the agents of poisoning and demographic distribution of children brought to Civil Hospital Karachi (CHK) with a history of accidental poison intake and to examine the factors associated with it. METHODS This hospital based descriptive study of first 100 patients from both sexes who presented to Pediatric department, CHK from 1st January 2006 till 31st December 2008 with exposure to a known poisonous agent and fulfilling other inclusion criteria were included in the study. Data regarding their demographic profile and potential risk factors was collected on a well structured proforma, cases were followed until discharge or expiry. Data was analyzed using frequencies, proportions, group means, median and standard deviations. RESULTS The male to female ratio in our study was 1.2:1, with kerosene (50%) being the most common household agent followed by medicines (38%), insecticides (7%) and bathroom cleaners (5%). Factors such as mother's education level, number of siblings and storage place of poison correlated significantly with the cases of accidental poisoning. Most of the children (70%) presented within 3 hours of ingestion. Dyspnea was the most common symptom observed. The mortality rate in our study was 3%. CONCLUSIONS Children belonging to age group 2-3 years are the most susceptible both in terms of morbidity and mortality. Preventive strategies need to be adopted at a national level to spread awareness among parents.