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Pediatric plant exposures in Germany, 1998-2004
Jörg Pietsch1, Ingrid Koch, Maren Hermanns-Clausen
11Institute of Legal Medicine, Dresden Technical University, Dresden,Germany. joerg.pietsch@tu-dresden.de
Clinical Toxicology (Philadelphia, Pa.)
|July 9, 2008
Summary
Plant exposures are common in German children, with most causing no symptoms. However, severe poisonings can occur, with Brugmansia, Laburnum, Phaseolus, and Thuja posing the highest risks.
Area of Science:
- Toxicology
- Pediatric Emergency Medicine
- Environmental Health
Background:
- Poison Information Centres (PIC) in Germany receive 80,000–100,000 calls annually regarding pediatric exposures.
- Plant exposures constitute 22% of pediatric cases handled by PIC, making them a significant concern.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze the scope and severity of plant exposures in children (0–14 years) in Germany.
- To identify specific plant genera associated with severe pediatric poisoning incidents.
Main Methods:
- Data collected from annual reports of German PIC covering pediatric plant exposures from 1998 to 2004.
- Severity assessment based on the number of ingestions and a calculated hazard factor for each plant exposure.
Main Results:
- A total of 58,641 cases involving 248 plant genera were reported.
- Most plant exposures (90.4%) did not result in clinical effects at the time of the call.
- However, 9.6% of cases exhibited noticeable effects, with 0.4% classified as moderate or major severity.
Conclusions:
- The majority of plant genera reviewed have low hazard factors for pediatric exposures.
- Severe poisonings in children were primarily linked to exposures involving Brugmansia, Laburnum, Phaseolus, and Thuja species.
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