2017 Annual Report of Medical Toxicology Consultations/General Directorate of Poison Control Centres-Ministry of Health-Saudi Arabia

One of the most important medical emergency that results in sever morbidity and mortality is acute poisoning especially in developing countries. Young children contribute the majority of accidental poisoning cases all over the world. A retrospective analysis of poisoning calls received by the ministry of health Saudi Poisons Control Centers (Phone “937”) from the public as well as, from hospitals who registered poisoned patients during the one-year period (1st January to 31st December 2017) showed a total of 12566 calls. Children below 6 years of age constituted the vast majority of cases (84.2%).The majority of calls received were from public callers (87.3%). Males represented 57.9% of cases and Riyadh was the city with the largest number of calls received representing 37.5% of all calls. Furthermore, 98.5% of poisoning occurred at home, while 97.2% of exposures were accidental. We also found that 64.7% of public callers were advised to observe the patient at home and would not need to go to a hospital. Oral route of exposure constituted 95% of all routes of exposure. Drugs were the most common cause for poisoning consultations (59%) followed by household chemicals (25%). Non-toxic ingestions constituted 16% of all calls received. In conclusion, this study highlights the significance of raising public awareness of the risk factors and hazards present for household chemicals that children below 6 years of age are at higher risk of exposure to poisoning. In addition, Saudi Poisons Control Centers play a vital role in providing timely management guidelines for the management of poisoning cases thereby helping to save precious lives.