Clinical use of the poisoning severity score in acute pediatric poisoning

Abstract

To make an accurate diagnosis of poisoning and determine the severity of poisoning quickly without losing time are critical for managing the patient's medical treatment and predicting the prognosis. This study aimed to investigate PSS and Glasgow Coma Scale Score (GCS) effectiveness in predicting outcomes in acute pediatric poisoning. We retrospectively reviewed the data of intoxicated patients aged under 18 years who were admitted to the pediatric emergency service of Ondokuz Mayıs University Faculty of Medicine Clinical Research and Practice Hospital between January 1, 2018, and December 31, 2018. Two hundred twenty-two patients were admitted to our pediatric emergency department (ED) after drug ingestions. Of the patients enrolled in the study, 148 (66.7 %) were female, and 74 (33.3%) were male. The mean age was 105.8±75.3 months, and the median age was 65 (12-213) months. 96 (43.3%) poisoning cases were in the age range of 12-18 years. According to Poisoning Severity Score, it was found that 84 cases (37.4%) were asymptomatic (PSS score=0), 86 cases (38.7%) were minor (PSS score=1), 48 cases (21.6%) were moderate (score=2) and four cases (1.8%) were severe (PSS score=3). Combined using the Poisoning Severity Score with the patient's biochemical and physiological values may help improve an accurate diagnosis of poisoning and determine the severity of poisoning more accurately.