Citation

Chacko B, Krishna B, Kulkarni AP. Indian J. Crit. Care Med. 2019; 23(Suppl 4): S233.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, Indian Society of Critical Care Medicine, Publisher Medknow Publications)

DOI

10.5005/jp-journals-10071-23315

PMID

32020995 PMCID

Abstract

This issue brings to you, dear readers, the antidotes to actual poisons, backed by medical science and evidence for treatments. Way back in 1892, Lord William Bentinck penned an interesting report in the British Medical Journal on "Poisoning in India".1 It was noted that there was an increase in poisoning reports following suppression of dacoity and the Thuggee Cult of robbers by the Thuggee and Dacoity Department of the East Indian Company in the 1850s. Even then, as the author wrote, "the profusion of lethal agents furnished by the variety of deadly plants and the unrestricted freedom" with which any poison could be procured from bazaars were among the main reasons behind the surge in poisoning.

Fast-forward 150 years, the problem of poisoning still persists in India due to reasons mentioned above. As per reports, about 20% of the suicides are from India.2 While there are moves to legislating the use of insecticides with the Endosulfan ban (2011) and the recommendations of the Anupam Verma Committee (2016), the impact of this legislation is still not apparent.3

Contrary to the Lord Bentinck's report, where datura poisoning was the common mode of poisoning, organophosphorus, aluminum phosphide, and arsenic are now common modes of suicide and homicides in India...

Language: en