TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2020//
TI  - Hong Kong Poison Information Centre: Annual report 2018
JO  - Hong Kong journal of emergency medicine
A1  - Chow, T.Y.A.
A1  - Chan, C.K.
A1  - Ng, S.H.
A1  - Tse, M.L.
SP  - 344
EP  - 355
VL  - 27
IS  - 6
N2  - OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to report and analyse the poisoning data of Hong Kong Poison Information Centre in 2018. <br><br>METHODS: In 2018, all poisoning cases received by Hong Kong Poison Information Centre were retrieved from its database, Poison Information and Clinical Management System, for analysis. <br><br>RESULTS: A total of 3960 poisoned cases were analysed. There were 1770 male patients (44.7%), 2188 female patients (55.3%) and 2 sex-unspecified patients (<0.1%). The majority of cases (68.3%) were between 20 and 69 years old, and 9.9% involved children of 0-5 years old. The common causes of poisoning were suspected self-harm/suicidal attempt (36.6%), unintentional exposure (18.4%) and abusive substance use (11.1%). Excluding the common co-ingestant ethanol, the five commonest types of poison were benzodiazepines, paracetamol, Chinese herbal medicine, household products and zopiclone. Most patients were managed with supportive measures, while 13.5% and 13.7% of consultation cases were treated by decontamination and antidotes, respectively. The majority of cases had uneventful recovery; 0.8% resulted in death and 4.9% had major outcomes. A total of eight interesting cases were discussed. <br><br>CONCLUSION: This 13th annual report provided the updated epidemiological information on poisoning pattern in Hong Kong and highlighted important changes in comparison with our previous reports. © The Author(s) 2019.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 1024-9079
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1024907919893469
ID  - ref1
ER  -