Open AccessMANAGEMENT OF THE EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT PATIENT WITH TOXIC ALCOHOL POISONING
Author(s) -
Barbara Porębska,
Małgorzata Kaczmarek-Fojtar
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
emergency medical service
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2391-7822
DOI - 10.36740/emems202104108
Subject(s) - emergency department , methanol poisoning , alcohol dehydrogenase , medicine , alcohol , intensive care medicine , alcohol intoxication , ethylene glycol poisoning , hemodialysis , medical emergency , emergency medicine , poison control , injury prevention , psychiatry , methanol , biochemistry , chemistry , organic chemistry , metabolic acidosis
The aim of the study is to present the process of diagnosis and treatment of the patients poisoned with toxic alcohols. Furthermore, the suicide risk assessment was presented. The role of supportive cure and the importance of the treatment with alcohol dehydrogenase blockade with fomepizole or ethanol hemodialysis for severe intoxicated patients were presented. The differences in the treatment of poisoning with particular toxic alcohols were presented. Moreover, the important psychological factors in the management of this group of patients were also discussed. The paper was illustrated with typical case studies of patients suffering from methanol and ethylene glycol intoxication. Conclusions: 1. The recognition of toxic alcohol poisoning remains a challenge for the clinician, because nonspecific symptoms are similar in many other conditions. 2. Proper management of the poisoned patients requires thorough analysis of many aspects: circumstances of the event, laboratory findings, response to the treatment, and the patient’s psychological problems.