Recognition of Poisoning ✅ Flashcards
Describe the age distribution of poisoning?
Bimodal - young children under 5, and adolescents/young adults
Why are young children under 5 at higher risk of poisoning?
They are curious, explore their environment using all their senses, and are particularly prone to putting things in their mouths. They also lack a sense of danger
Why are adolescents/young adults at high risk of poisoning?
- Deliberate ingestion of substances from deliberate self harm
- Result of exploratory behaviour with recreational drugs
What substances are most commonly ingested by young children?
Those directly accessible in their own environment, e.g. household products such as bleach, OTC medications
What substances are most commonly ingested in deliberate self harm?
Paracetamol and ibuprofen
Other than ingestion, how can poisoning occur?
- Dermal exposure
- Inhalation
What is true of the majority of children and young people attending healthcare provision for potential poisoning?
They suffer little in the way of adverse effects, and do not require active management
Give 9 examples of medications that can be fatal in small doses (1-2 tablets) to children weighing <10kg
- Tricyclic antidepressants
- Antimalarials
- Beta blockers
- Calcium channel antagonists
- Oral hypoglycaemics
- Opioids
- Antiarrhythmics
- Theophylline
- Clozapine
How is unintentional harm from potentially very dangerous medicines prevented?
Safe storage
How do the majority of children and young people with suspected poisoning present?
With a clear history of potentially toxic exposure
How might toxic exposure be detected in young children?
They are usually found in possession of a packet of tablets, bottle of medicine, or household cleaning product
How might toxic exposure be detected in attempt at deliberate self harm?
Young people frequency admit ingestion to a third party, often a relative or friend
How is management of suspected poisoning guided
Risk assessment of potential harm
What factors are taken into account when assessing the risk of toxic ingestion?
- Toxicity of substance
- Toxicity of co-ingested substances
- Dose ingested and reliability of history
- Presence of symptoms
- Time since ingestion
- Other co-morbidities
In what situations might the substance responsible for poisoning be unclear?
- Unwillingness of patient to reveal what they have ingested
- Patient doesn’t know what they have ingested
What might identify the causative agent when a patient doesn’t know/is unwilling to disclose what substance they have ingested?
- Careful questioning of the family and friends
- Search of patients clothing
- Physical examination
- Lab tests
What is meant by ‘toxidrome’?
The combination of physical findings that result from excessive effect of specific classes of drugs
What are toxidrome useful for?
Narrowing down the diagnosis
