The nephrologist as a consultant for acute poisoning: epidemiology of severe poisonings in the State of Rio Grande do Sul and techniques to enhance renal elimination.

Accidental and intentional poisonings or drug overdoses constitute a significant cause of aggregate morbidity and mortality, and health care expenditures. The nephrologist is frequently called to the emergency room and ICU as a consultant to help with the indication of measures to enhance renal depuration of toxic agents. This study reviews the use of dialysis in acute poisonings due to medications or pesticides, whose specialized toxicological support was provided via telephone by the poison control center of the state of Rio Grande do Sul (CIT-RS from Portuguese). The correlation between need for dialysis and death was assessed in a retrospective cohort (1998-2000). Of the 36,055 cases registered, 337 were identified as severe, and 245 met the inclusion criteria required. Mean age was 30 ± 18 years, and 53% of the patients were women. The most commonly involved medications were anticonvulsants and antidepressants, and the pesticides were organophosphates, bipyridyl compounds, and glyphosate. Techniques to enhance elimination included urinary alkalinization (n = 37) and dialysis. In severe poisonings, dialysis was performed in 4.5% of the cases (n = 11), 3.67 procedures/year (1/22.7 reports of severe cases). In the group undergoing dialysis, 91% involved a suicide attempt (mainly phenobarbital and paraquat). Two cases required hemoperfusion (chloramphenicol and paraquat). Death among non-dialyzed severely ill patients occurred in 25.6%, versus 36.3% of dialyzed patients (RR = 0.89; 95% CI = 0.54-1.35). The findings can be explained by the statistic power associated with the number of procedures performed. The nephrologist should be aware of situations requiring the use of dialysis, even if not necessarily aimed at renal replacement, but at enhancing depuration of a toxic agent.