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Self‐poisoning treated in an ICU: drug pattern, acute mortality and short‐term survival
Author(s) -
STRØM J.,
THISTED B.,
KRANTZ T.,
SØRENSEN M. BREDGAARD
Publication year - 1986
Publication title -
acta anaesthesiologica scandinavica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.738
H-Index - 107
eISSN - 1399-6576
pISSN - 0001-5172
DOI - 10.1111/j.1399-6576.1986.tb02386.x
Subject(s) - medicine , propoxyphene , tricyclic , drug overdose , incidence (geometry) , mortality rate , anesthesia , poison control , analgesic , emergency medicine , pharmacology , physics , optics
A total of 1558 admissions to an ICU over 5 years because of severe self‐poisoning with drugs provides the basis for this study. Three drugs accounted for 60% of the admissions: overdose with barbiturates in 28%, with tricyclic antidepressants in 19% and with propoxyphene in 14%. The annual incidence of poisonings with barbiturates and tricyclic antidepressants was the same during the period, whereas the incidence of propoxyphene intoxication increased by 80%. Intensive supportive care was the main principle of treatment. All patients were artificially ventilated. The mortality rate was 6.1%, salicylate, propoxyphene and strong analgesics having the highest mortalities (11%, 9% and 9%, respectively). A mortality rate of 3% was found following overdose with tricyclic antidepressants. By 36 months after the overdose, 235 patients (18%) had died. The expected number of deaths was 39 (3%). The suicide rate in the follow‐up period was 10%, in the majority (75%) of whom death was caused by a new episode of self‐poisoning.