Ten years of latrogenic intoxications from the Spanish poison control center.
Iatrogenic incidents involving drugs are the main type of nosocomial intoxications reported to the Spanish Poison Control Center. We examined 231 such incidences from January 1991 to December 2000; 46.1% were route errors, 42.4% overdoses and 7.3% administration to the wrong patient. The most important cause of error in hospitals and dentist consults was route confusions and overdoses in primary health care units. In 56.2% of the dose errors the patient was a child < 2y old in a pediatric inpatient setting, involving the iv route; the common administered drugs were anti-infectives, anticoagulants, analgesics and sedatives. Poison Control Centers have an important role in the prevention of iatrogenic intoxications.
Ballesteros
Salomé
S
Spanish Poison Control Centre, Instituto Nacional de Toxicología, C/ Luis Cabrera 9, 28002 Madrid, Spain.
Ramón
Fátima
F
Martínez-Arrieta
Rosa
R
Larrotcha
Carmen
C
Cabrera
José
J
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000700:Analgesics / Q000506:poisoning*; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000506:poisoning*; D000925:Anticoagulants / Q000506:poisoning*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003813:Dentistry / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D062787:Drug Overdose / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy; D006801:Humans; D006993:Hypnotics and Sedatives / Q000506:poisoning*; D007049:Iatrogenic Disease; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008508:Medication Errors; D008875:Middle Aged; D011039:Poison Control Centers / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011320:Primary Health Care; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013030:Spain
D000700:Analgesics; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D000925:Anticoagulants; D006993:Hypnotics and Sedatives