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Corrosive substance ingestion in children
Nafiye Urganci1, Merve Usta, Derya Kalyoncu
1Division of Pediatric Gastroenterology, Sisli Etfal Training and Research Hospital, Istanbul, Turkey.
Insights
Children over 5 years old ingesting corrosive substances, especially alkaline ones, face a higher risk of esophageal stricture. Preventive measures like family education and safe storage are crucial to reduce corrosive ingestion incidents in children.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Gastroenterology
- Toxicology
- Public Health
Background:
- Ingestion of corrosive substances is a significant cause of injury in children.
- Sodium hydroxide (NaOH) is a common agent involved in pediatric corrosive ingestions.
- Demographic and socioeconomic factors may influence the incidence and outcomes of corrosive ingestion.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze the demographic characteristics, ingested substances, clinical presentations, management, and complications of corrosive substance ingestion in children.
- To identify risk factors for stricture formation following corrosive ingestion.
- To inform preventive strategies for corrosive ingestion in pediatric populations.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of 1709 children (0-16 years) who ingested corrosive substances.
- Evaluation of medical records for demographic data, substance type, clinical findings, and complications.
- Statistical analysis to determine factors associated with stricture formation.
Main Results:
- The mean age of affected children was 35.23 months; the male to female ratio was 1.45:1.
- Sodium hydroxide (NaOH) was present in 41% of the ingested substances.
- Esophageal stricture occurred in 1.69% of cases, predominantly linked to alkaline substance ingestion (79.31%).
- Stricture formation was significantly more frequent in children older than 5 years (p=0.001).
Conclusions:
- Children over 5 years with grade 2b esophagitis require close monitoring for esophageal stricture development.
- Implementing preventive measures, including family education and secure storage of corrosive agents, is essential.
- Public health initiatives should focus on reducing accidental corrosive ingestion among children.
Objectives:
To evaluate children who ingested corrosive substances, in terms of demographic features, nature of ingested substances, clinical findings, management and complications.
Methods:
A total of 1709 cases aged between 0 and 16 y who ingested corrosive substance were analyzed retrospectively by evaluating the medical records of the patients.
Results:
The mean age of the cases was 35.23 ± 30.65 mo and male:female ratio was 1.45. Forty one percent of corrosive substances causing intoxication contained NaOH. Thirty percent of the families consisted of 5 or more members. Fourteen percent of the mothers were illiterate. Stricture formation was observed in 29 (1.69 %) of the cases during follow-up. In 79.31 % of those cases alkaline substance ingestion was responsible for stricture development. It was found that stricture formation occurred more frequently among cases who were older than 5 y of age and this finding was statistically significant (p = 0.001).
Conclusions:
The cases older than 5 y of age with the diagnosis of grade 2b esophagitis must be followed up closely for the stricture formation. In order to protect children from corrosive ingestion, importance must be given to preventive measures such as education of families, keeping and storing these agents out of the reach of children and providing safety caps for these products.
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