Voluntary self-poisoning in children – a silent call for help

Abstract

Introduction. Voluntary self-poisoning represents nowadays a public health issue, being one of the main causes of morbidity and mortality in pediatric patients. The psychological burden some children have to carry becomes heavier than their strength, fact that determine them to make their voices heard through self-hurting. Aim. The current study proposed to raise awareness upon the multiple cases of voluntary ingestions between children, to assess the reasons and, consequently, to find solutions to support our future generations. Materials and methods. This is an observational retrospective study performed by analyzing the medical data of the patients admitted to the Department of Pediatrics I, from the Clinical County Emergency Hospital Targu Mures, with the diagnostic of toxic substance ingestion, between 1st of January 2019 and 31st December 2022. The study group comprised of 204 children, who were exposed to harmful chemicals, 68 of them being voluntarily involved. Results. A slight increase in the number of cases have been observed during SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Additionally, we identified that teenage girls were more prone to self-poison than pre-school boys, who were more susceptible to unintentionally ingest toxics. Low family income, abandon, scholar difficulties, use of alcohol and pregnancy were only some of the causes of producing emotional instability. Furthermore, the most preferable substances to consume were pharmaceuticals, especially psychotropics. Conclusion. The study is emphasizing the necessity to establish mental support systems for the children who struggle with past traumas. Founding trustful connections between the child and its family, school and health care professionals can help reduce the self-harm cases and even develop a much more emotionally stronger society.

Keywords

• children
• self-poisoning
• pharmaceuticals
• psychological burden