title: Battery acid--an agent of attempted suicide in black South Africans.
abstract: Over a 36-month period 27 black adults, who had taken battery acid in apparent suicide attempts, were admitted to a major South African general hospital for assessment and treatment. There were no deaths. Patient features included limited schooling, unemployment and a male/female ratio of 2.4:1. Triggers were minor to moderate stressors (mainly domestic arguments) in 23 patients. Nine had a diagnosable psychiatric disorder and 5 required further psychiatric hospitalisation following discharge from the general hospital. The reported high mortality rate from acid ingestion was not observed; however, 4 patients required surgical intervention to deal with stricture formation. The average duration of stay was 7.6 days. There were no repeat suicide attempts during the study period.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Cape Town.
authors.forename: D A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Wilson
authors.forename: P J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Wormald
mesh_terms: D000143:Acids / Q000506:poisoning*; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American; D001336:Automobiles; D044383:Black People; D002057:Burns, Chemical / Q000208:ethnology / Q000601:surgery; D004947:Esophagus / Q000293:injuries*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013019:South Africa; D013406:Suicide, Attempted / Q000523:psychology
chemical_list: D000143:Acids