Abstract
Retrospective study in a Toxicological Unit Care (TUC) performed
to know the epidemiology of acute intoxication (AI) in
Verona (Italy) during years 2008-2009.
All data regarding patients with a diagnosis of certain/suspected
AI were collected and evaluated: some demographic information,
the characteristics of the agent involved, the pattern of exposure,
the triage at the admission to TUC and the outcome.
244 cases were analyzed: 45.9% males and 54.9% females, mean
age respectively 45.1 and 43.9 years. The monthly distribution of
admitted patients resulted fairly constant, except from a light rising
prevalence in autumn, with a majority of yellow (45.9%) and green
(43.4%) triage code. The pattern of exposure resulted: ingestion
(82.7% of cases; age peaks: 18-34 and 35-51 years old; mostly due
to food (as mushrooms), drinks, detergents, soap, pharmaceutical,
drugs of abuse, caustics substances), contact (10.2% of cases; age
peak 18-51) and inhalation (6.9% of cases). In 17.2% of cases the
poisoning exposure was intentional. In 63.5% the patients were
sent to their general practitioners (45.5% of the yellow and 81.1%
of the green coded patients) and in 22.1% of cases they were admitted
to clinical rooms (44.6% of the yellow coded patients).
In most cases the triage code assigned to the studied patients
resulted yellow and green. Considering that the seriousness of
the symptoms can appear after several hours from the exposure
to toxic substances, a quick and specific intervention to obtain the
best therapeutical effectiveness is suitable, in order to save lives
or to avoid irremediable health damages.
