 |
|
The Four A's of Decreasing the Toll of Childhood Iron Poisoning Deaths
Milton Tenenbein, MD
George C. Rodgers, Jr, MD, PhD
Arch Fam Med. 1994;3(9):754-755.
|
|
| Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings. |
|
|
|
IRON IS the most common cause of poisoning death in children younger than 6 years. From 1985 through 1989, the American Association of Poison Control Centers found that iron accounted for 30% of pharmaceutical poisoning fatalities in this age group.1 From 1990 through 1992, the Association documented 98 deaths in children younger than 6 years, of which 22 were due to iron poisoning.2-4 From June 1992 through January 1993, five children, aged 11 through 18 months, in the Los Angeles, Calif, area died after ingesting iron supplement tablets.5
The dosage form responsible for these deaths is tablets intended for the prophylaxis or treatment of iron deficiency in adults, typically prenatal supplements. Pediatric dosage forms such as children's chewable multivitamins with iron and infant iron drops do not produce significant morbidity or mortal ity.2-4 Children's multivitamins typically have 4 mg of elemental iron per tablet. Thus
. . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]
Author Affiliations
University of Manitoba Winnipeg
University of Louisville (Ky)
|
