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Accidental Drug Poisoning Involving Children on the Increase

The number of incidents involving accidental drug poisoning and children are on the rise across the country.  According to the results of a study that has just been published in the journal Pediatrics, this is due to the increasing use of prescription pills in American homes, and negligence in allowing children access to medications.

The research was conducted by analysts from the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center and the University of Cincinnati.  The researchers analyzed national poison control center data involving children below the age of five.  There were more than 533,000 children included in the analysis.  These children had suffered an accidental drug poisoning, and had visited the hospital emergency room between 2001 and 2008.

In 95% of the cases, the researchers noted that the poisoning involved the ingestion of the drug.  Prescription drug poisoning was more widespread than non-prescription drug or over-the-counter drug poisoning.  Prescription drugs were a factor in 55% of the accidental drug poisonings that required an emergency room visit.  However, these were involved in 75% of the most serious injuries.  43% of the children who were rushed to hospital after imbibing prescription drugs, ended up in the intensive care unit.

The prescription drugs that were most commonly involved in accidental drug poisoning in children were those that are used for pain relief, like oxycodone and codeine.   Sedatives, muscle relaxers, sleeping medications and prescription cardiac drugs were also involved in drug poisoning incidents.

The researchers believe that the reason for this increase in the number of drug poisoning incidents involving children is the fact that there are simply more prescription drugs being used in every family now.  Parents or caregivers may leave drugs lying around and accessible to children, not knowing that these drugs can have serious effects when imbibed by children.  Additionally, children are also now being prescribed more and more pills that are similar to those prescribed for adults.  For instance, there are more children now on diabetes medication and anti obesity medications.

Also, the kind of pharmaceutical drugs that are being prescribed now days are stronger, and are possibly have more toxic side effects.  For instance, patients who were being prescribed diuretics for blood pressure in the past, are now frequently prescribed beta blockers which come with more serious overdose effects.

The researchers advise all parents to store all prescription and non-prescription drugs in locked cabinets.  Parents tend to be a little careless about medications that they use every day, but may not realize that a child who imbibes these pills could be at a series of risk of injury.  It’s very important, that even daily dose medications like those for hypertension be kept sealed in a separate medicine cabinet.

Los Angeles product liability lawyers also believe that pharmaceutical companies can do more to prevent drug poisoning involving children.  More tamperproof or childproof seals for prescription drugs could make these inaccessible to children.

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