Mapping the probable daily poisoning incidents according to the individuals demographics

Abstract

On a daily basis, individuals are exposed to potential poisoning by different sources such as medicines, food, alcohol, pesticides, and chemical cleaning materials. In these circumstances, individuals often need to undergo medical emergency interventions to manage the serious consequences that can appear simultaneously with the poisoning or in the long term. Indeed, the nature and circumstances of daily poisoning cases vary among socio-demographic backgrounds. This fact requires the development of a medical emergency system that integrates emergency toxicity treatments. This perspective further suggests the development of appropriate prevention and treatment programs according to the geographical distribution of the recorded daily poisoning incidences. A database was built in regards to the many acute poisoning cases recorded in a number of emergency facilities based on four geographical zones in Syria. The data included the source of the poisoning and the individual’s identity demographics, like age, gender, profession, the area of residence, and employment. The statistical analysis proved that there is an evident relationship between the types of daily poisonings and the demographics of the individuals poisoned including the geographical location. Thus, this study showed the importance of developing a probabilistic mapping on a national scale of the possible daily poisoning incidents based on the individuals’ demographics. Furthermore, this approach allows local and national authorities to develop anti-poisoning centers and provide the equipment and most appropriate medical materials according to the needs of each region.

Keywords

• daily poisoning
• public health
• health prevention
• poisoning database
• data analysis