title: Syrup of ipecac availability: before and after a poisoning.
abstract: A retrospective review was conducted of 1,230 human poison exposures in which syrup of ipecac was administered to determine the availability of this emetic. Ipecac was available in 41.1% of the homes, while 42.5% obtained it from the pharmacy. Eight and two tenths percent were referred to a health care facility, 2.9% obtained ipecac from a neighbor, 2.3% went to an emergency room prior to calling the poison center, and 3% obtained ipecac from other sources. A randomly selected sample of 150 of these 1,230 cases were contacted 6 months after their initial call to the poison center to determine any changes in the availability of syrup of ipecac in the home. Although almost 30% more homes had syrup of ipecac than previously, 22.2% of homes still did not have ipecac available, despite the previous poisoning experience. Greater effort should be made during follow-up to educate the public regarding ipecac and its use.
authors.forename: B A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Steur
authors.forename: B S
authors.initials: BS
authors.lastname: Dean
authors.forename: G W
authors.initials: GW
authors.lastname: Everson
authors.forename: E P
authors.initials: EP
authors.lastname: Krenzelok
mesh_terms: D004363:Drug Utilization; D005392:First Aid; D006266:Health Education; D006801:Humans; D007486:Ipecac / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D011039:Poison Control Centers; D011041:Poisoning / Q000188:drug therapy*; D012189:Retrospective Studies
chemical_list: D007486:Ipecac