Citation

Okumura Y, Shimizu S, Ishikawa KB, Matsuda S, Fushimi K, Ito H. Gen. Hosp. Psychiatry 2012; 34(6): 681-685.

Affiliation

Department of Social Psychiatry, National Institute of Mental Health, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Kodaira 187-8553, Tokyo, Japan.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2012, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.genhosppsych.2012.07.009

PMID

22902257

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to describe the clinical and procedural characteristics of drug poisoning, to examine procedural differences between drug poisoning repeaters and non-repeaters, and to estimate the costs of drug poisoning. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study of a nationally representative sample of 6585 inpatients with drug poisoning was conducted, using the administrative database of the Diagnosis Procedure Combination/Per-Diem Payment System in 2008. RESULTS: Although only 3% of patients required surgery and 65% were discharged from the hospitals within 3 days, greater than 30% were admitted to tertiary emergency care (i.e., high-level emergency care) centers that provide care to severely ill and trauma patients who require intensive care. Only 30% of patients received psychiatric consultation during hospitalization. In addition, repeaters were less likely to be admitted to hospitals by ambulance (67% vs. 76%) and more likely to be discharged within 3 days (77% vs. 65%) than non-repeaters. The annual economic burden of drug poisoning in Japan was $66 million (¥7.7 billion), with the population aged 20-39 years accounting for 50% of these costs. CONCLUSION: This study highlights the need for optimally allocating resources and improving prevention strategies.

Language: en