Fatal aluminum phosphide poisonings in Tirana (Albania), 2009 – 2013
| Autor: | Irena Çeko, Amarda Gashi, Alert Drishti, Gentian Vyshka, Zihni Sulaj |
|---|---|
| Jazyk: | angličtina |
| Předmět: |
Adult
Male medicine.medical_specialty Adolescent Injury control Phosphines Short Communication Administration Oral Poison control Suicide prevention Occupational safety and health Hospitals University Young Adult Injury prevention medicine Humans Medical help seeking Pesticides Mortality Aluminum Compounds Retrospective Studies Aluminum phosphide (AIP) business.industry Poisoning Phostoxin Incidence Public health Building and Construction Middle Aged medicine.disease Suicide Albania Aluminum phosphide Female Medical emergency business |
| Zdroj: | DARU Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences |
| ISSN: | 2008-2231 |
| DOI: | 10.1186/s40199-015-0090-0 |
| Popis: | Background Acute poisonings particularly through pesticides have become a major public health concern in Albania during the last decade. Findings The number of fatalities due to aluminum phosphide intoxications was more than doubled during a five year-period from 2009 to 2013, and a cluster of suicides perpetrated with Phostoxin was registered. Several factors are accountable for such a phenomenon, including the fact that aluminum phosphide agents are freely available in the Albanian market, their price is extremely low and they are sold without any legal restriction. The mass media unfortunately warranted an emulating effect to dramatic intoxications, which gained by such means the notoriety of a secure lethal weapon. Conclusions Our experience with more than three hundred intoxications with aluminum phosphide agents in the last five years, showed that a considerable delay from the moment of exposure (mainly through ingestion) to specialized medical help seeking, created a considerable obstacle for a successful treatment of cases, and eventually for the survival of patients. The lack of a specific antidote adds further challenges to all these exposures. The need for public health policies aiming at prevention, awareness, and possibly the substitution of Phostoxin or other aluminum phosphide pesticides with less dangerous agents is formulated. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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