Clinical characteristics of emergency visits for acute poisoning among children and adolescents: a single-center retrospective study (2021–2025) in China
- 1Department of Emergency, Affiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical University , , ,
Abstract
Objective: To investigate the clinical characteristics of acute poisoning in children and adolescents, and to provide a basis for developing targeted prevention and control strategies. This study analyzed the clinical characteristics and temporal trends of acute poisoning cases admitted to the Emergency Department of a tertiary general hospital in Zunyi, Guizhou Province during 2021–2025.
Methods: Data of children and adolescents with acute poisoning presenting to the Emergency Department from January 1, 2021, to December 31, 2025 were collected retrospectively. Descriptive analysis was conducted on age, gender, seasonal distribution and patient discharge disposition.
Results: A total of 1,202 cases of acute poisoning among children and adolescents were enrolled, including 932 valid cases with an effective rate of 77.54%. The annual number of acute poisoning in children and adolescents showed a continuous upward trend from 2021 to 2025, with 40 cases in 2021, 139 cases in 2022, 184 cases in 2023, 240 cases in 2024 and 329 cases in 2025. There were 358 male patients and 574 female patients. Most patients were aged 12–18 years (645 cases, 69.21%), followed by those aged 3–6 years (109 cases, 11.70%), 1–3 years (100 cases, 10.73%), 6–12 years (70 cases, 7.51%), and aged 0–1 year (8 cases, 0.86%). Drug poisoning ranked first (641 cases, 69%), followed by pesticide poisoning (131 cases), chemical poisoning (85 cases) and food poisoning (75 cases). Among patients with drug poisoning, 208 were male and 433 were female. Chemical poisoning, pesticide poisoning and drug poisoning predominantly occurred in the 12–18 age group, while food poisoning was mainly seen in aged 6–12 years. Seasonal distribution analysis showed that the largest number of cases occurred in spring (240 cases, 25.75%), followed by summer (184 cases, 19.74%), autumn (139 cases, 14.91%) and winter (40 cases, 4.29%). Drug poisoning and pesticide poisoning were predominant in spring; drug poisoning and food poisoning were the main types in summer and autumn; drug poisoning and chemical poisoning prevailed in winter. The daily number of drug poisoning was significantly higher than that of the other three poisoning types, with the highest volumes on Mondays and Wednesdays. The afternoon shift received the largest total number of patients (392 cases), especially on Wednesdays (78 cases). The overall intensive care unit (ICU) admission rate for acute poisoning was 7%. The admission rate for pesticide poisoning (84%) was markedly higher than that of other poisoning types. Children with drug poisoning and food poisoning were more likely to receive observation and follow-up.
Conclusions: The number of emergency visits for acute poisoning among minors increased year by year during the study period. Drug poisoning was the leading type, which mainly affected female adolescents aged 12–18 years. Spring was the peak season of onset, and most visits occurred during the afternoon shift. Pesticide poisoning had the highest hospital admission rate. The epidemiological features and clinical outcomes of acute poisoning in local minors are distinct. Clinical and public health interventions should primarily target adolescents and high-risk factors associated with drug poisoning. Targeted health education and early interventions should be implemented according to the risks of severe cases, as well as seasonal and time-based patterns of poisoning, so as to reduce the incidence of acute poisoning and the risk of severe complications.
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BibTeX
@article{li2026clinical,
title = {{Clinical characteristics of emergency visits for acute poisoning among children and adolescents: a single-center retrospective study (2021–2025) in China}},
author = {Lin-fei Li and Xian-juan Gou and Jing He and Ling-jun Luo and Li Yang and Mei Chen and Wei-yan Tian},
journal = {Frontiers in pediatrics},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3389/fped.2026.1939513},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13724359},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Clinical characteristics of emergency visits for acute poisoning among children and adolescents: a single-center retrospective study (2021–2025) in China
AU - Lin-fei Li
AU - Xian-juan Gou
AU - Jing He
AU - Ling-jun Luo
AU - Li Yang
AU - Mei Chen
AU - Wei-yan Tian
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/19
JO - Frontiers in pediatrics
DO - 10.3389/fped.2026.1939513
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13724359
AB - Objective: To investigate the clinical characteristics of acute poisoning in children and adolescents, and to provide a basis for developing targeted prevention and control strategies. This study analyzed the clinical characteristics and temporal trends of acute poisoning cases admitted to the Emergency Department of a tertiary general hospital in Zunyi, Guizhou Province during 2021–2025. Methods: Data of children and adolescents with acute poisoning presenting to the Emergency Department from January 1, 2021, to December 31, 2025 were collected retrospectively. Descriptive analysis was conducted on age, gender, seasonal distribution and patient discharge disposition. Results: A total of 1,202 cases of acute poisoning among children and adolescents were enrolled, including 932 valid cases with an effective rate of 77.54%. The annual number of acute poisoning in children and adolescents showed a continuous upward trend from 2021 to 2025, with 40 cases in 2021, 139 cases in 2022, 184 cases in 2023, 240 cases in 2024 and 329 cases in 2025. There were 358 male patients and 574 female patients. Most patients were aged 12–18 years (645 cases, 69.21%), followed by those aged 3–6 years (109 cases, 11.70%), 1–3 years (100 cases, 10.73%), 6–12 years (70 cases, 7.51%), and aged 0–1 year (8 cases, 0.86%). Drug poisoning ranked first (641 cases, 69%), followed by pesticide poisoning (131 cases), chemical poisoning (85 cases) and food poisoning (75 cases). Among patients with drug poisoning, 208 were male and 433 were female. Chemical poisoning, pesticide poisoning and drug poisoning predominantly occurred in the 12–18 age group, while food poisoning was mainly seen in aged 6–12 years. Seasonal distribution analysis showed that the largest number of cases occurred in spring (240 cases, 25.75%), followed by summer (184 cases, 19.74%), autumn (139 cases, 14.91%) and winter (40 cases, 4.29%). Drug poisoning and pesticide poisoning were predominant in spring; drug poisoning and food poisoning were the main types in summer and autumn; drug poisoning and chemical poisoning prevailed in winter. The daily number of drug poisoning was significantly higher than that of the other three poisoning types, with the highest volumes on Mondays and Wednesdays. The afternoon shift received the largest total number of patients (392 cases), especially on Wednesdays (78 cases). The overall intensive care unit (ICU) admission rate for acute poisoning was 7%. The admission rate for pesticide poisoning (84%) was markedly higher than that of other poisoning types. Children with drug poisoning and food poisoning were more likely to receive observation and follow-up. Conclusions: The number of emergency visits for acute poisoning among minors increased year by year during the study period. Drug poisoning was the leading type, which mainly affected female adolescents aged 12–18 years. Spring was the peak season of onset, and most visits occurred during the afternoon shift. Pesticide poisoning had the highest hospital admission rate. The epidemiological features and clinical outcomes of acute poisoning in local minors are distinct. Clinical and public health interventions should primarily target adolescents and high-risk factors associated with drug poisoning. Targeted health education and early interventions should be implemented according to the risks of severe cases, as well as seasonal and time-based patterns of poisoning, so as to reduce the incidence of acute poisoning and the risk of severe complications.
SN - 2296-2360
ER -