[Assessment risk factors for unintentional childhood poisoning: a case-control study in Tehran]

ABSTRACT

Recently, childhood poisoning has become one of the most pressing concerns in injury epidemiology. The aim of this study is to identify the main risk factors in unintentional childhood poisoning. The present study is individual method case-control based in a hospital [case; n = 140, control; n = 280] in Tehran 1392. Cases with controls are matched on sex and age. Then children's parents are interviewed to determine demographic, behavior, previous poisoning, addiction and mental disease in the family, accessibility of poisoning products, and household size, using semi-structured interview by standard questionnaire. Finally invariable-multi adjusted Conditional Logistic Regression models were constructed. Narcotic poisoning was of highest prevalence among the cases [58.6%]. The majority of the poisonings occurred at home [96.4%]. The invariable model showed that maternal occupation, parent education, smoker parent, previous poisoning, addiction and mental disease in the family, accessibility of poisoning products, and household size all related to unintentional childhood poisoning. Finally, the multi-adjusted model in stepwise manner showed that addiction in the family [OR = 14.6, p <0.001], previous poisoning [OR = 7, P <0.001], maternal occupation [OR = 4, P = 0.016], and accessibility of poisoning products [OR = 0.03, P <0.001] associated with outcome. Addiction in the family as risk factor and inability to access poisoning products had the most association with unintentional childhood poisoning. It is recommended that public health planning focus on these two factors.