Systematic review and single‐centre toxicology study identified analgesics and benzodiazepines as the main causes of paediatric medication poisoning

Abstract

Aim This study evaluated medication poisoning in paediatric patients through a systematic review and a retrospective documentary analysis in a Brazilian toxicological centre. Methods The data were systematically collected on PubMed, Scopus and SciELO databases following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta‐Analysis guidelines. We included epidemiologic and prevalence studies that were published in English or Portuguese from 2013 to 2017 and covered paediatric patients. The retrospective incidence study was carried out in a Brazilian toxicological centre and was a documentary analysis of paediatric medication poisoning cases from 2005 to 2015. Results The systematic review comprised 13 papers covering 895 206 poisoning cases from six different countries. The main agents of intoxication were analgesics and antihistamines. The eight papers that explored the reasons for the poisonings showed that 93% of those 762 863 cases were accidental. The Brazilian toxicological centre recorded 443 paediatric patients poisoned by medication such as benzodiazepines, analgesics and antibiotics and found that 63.2% were accidental. However, it agreed with the global findings in many other aspects. Conclusion The systematic review showed a sustained number of paediatric medication toxicity cases worldwide and the key findings were broadly reflected by the retrospective study carried out in the Brazilian toxicological centre.

GABAergic Psychoactive Substance-Induced Delirium: Narrative Literature Review

“…The study by Smarczewski and associates recorded 443 cases of medications poisoning of children over a ten-year period at the West Paraná University Hospital [38]. Sixty three percent of poisonings were accidental and 31.8 % were suicide attempts.…”

“…Sixty three percent of poisonings were accidental and 31.8 % were suicide attempts. The most common medications whose consumption has led to poisoning were BDZs, followed by analgesics [38]. Between 1996 and 2013, the number of deaths caused by BDZs intoxication increased by more than 400 %, and emergency department visits due to BDZ intoxication increased by more than 300 % from 2004 to 2011.…”