Summary

Patterns of acute chemical poisoning cases registered with the Spanish Toxicovigilance System between 2015 and 2019

Aceysele González-Díaz¹, Sebastián Matos-Castro^1,2, Nerea Arruabarrena Urrestarazu¹, Elsa González Valladares¹, Sara Molina Padilla¹, Ana Ferrer Dufol^3,4, Santiago Nogué Xarau³, Pinillos Echeverría Miguel Ángel³, Benjamin Climent Díaz^3,5, Ángel Bajo Bajo^3,6, Jordi Puiguriguer Ferrando^3,7, Antonio Dueñas Laita^2,3,8, Guillermo Burillo-Putze^1-3, en representación del SETv.

Affiliation of the authors

¹Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Europea Canarias, Tenerife, Spain. sup>2RIAPAD. Red de Investigación en Atención Primaria de Adicciones. ³Fundación Española de Toxicología Clínica, Zaragoza, Spain. ⁴Unidad de Toxicología, Hospital Clínico Universitario Lozano Blesa, Zaragoza, Spain. ⁵Servicio de Medicina Interna, Hospital Clínico Universitario, Valencia, Spain. ⁶Servicio de Urgencias, Hospital Universitario de Salamanca, Spain. ⁷Servicio de Urgencias y Unidad de Toxicología Clínica, Hospital Son Espases, Palma de Mallorca, Spain. ⁸Unidad Regional de Toxicología Clínica, Hospital Universitario del Río Ortega, Universidad de Valladolid, Spain.

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González-Díaz A, Matos-Castro S, Arruabarrena Urrestarazu N, González Valladares E, Molina Padilla S, Ferrer Dufol A, Nogué Xarau S, Pinillos Echeverría MA, Climent Díaz B, Bajo Bajo A, Puiguriguer Ferrando J, Dueñas Laita A, Burillo-Putze G. Patterns of acute chemical poisoning cases registered with the Spanish Toxicovigilance System between 2015 and 2019. Rev Esp Urg Emerg. 2023;2:30–5

Summary

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE. The epidemiology of acute poisoning cases can shed light on how these events change over time so that preventive measures can be proposed. This study aimed to describe the characteristics of chemical poisonings treated in emergency rooms cooperating with the Spanish Toxicovigilance System (SETv).
MATERIAL AND METHODS. Descriptive observational study of poisonings due to chemical products found in homes, workplaces, or industrial plants that were registered with the SETv in the 5 years from 2015 through 2019 after treatment in 22 hospitals in 9 Spanish autonomous communities. We analyzed data for variables in the following categories: demographic (age, sex), cause (suicide; homicide;
or exposure in the home, workplace or other setting), poison (toxic, irritant, or other gases; detergents; solvents; cosmetics; pesticides;
caustic substances; metals; and other), route of exposure (mouth, respiratory system, skin, eye), initial symptom (neurologic, dermatologic,
respiratory, card ovascular, digestive, kidney, other), severity, and clinical course (hospitalization, discharge, death).
RESULTS. A total of 5709 cases were registered; 47.3% of the patients were women. The mean (SD) patient age was 38.05 (23.54) years. Accidental exposure in the home accounted for 77.2% of the cases. Workplace exposures and suicides were significantly more frequent in men (P < .001). Toxic gases were implicated in 44.2% of the cases; the next most frequent categories were caustic substances (18%), irritant gases (11.7%), and detergents (7.4%). The most common route of exposure was the respiratory tract (in 45.6%), and the most frequent symptoms involved the nervous system (24.1%). Patients presented in serious condition in 6.8% of the cases, and 13.3% were hospitalized. Patients spent a mean of 0.75 (3.54) hours in the emergency department. Mortality was 0.93%, and 85.3% of patients could be discharged home.
CONCLUSION. Chemical poisoning occurs mainly in the home. Most cases are unintentional, and the culprit substance is usually a toxic gas.