Social and environmental aspects of kerosene poisoning in children in Jeddah

The main objective of the present study was to identify the social and enviornmenal aspects of kerosene poisoning in children, at King Abdulaziz Hospital [KAH], Jeddah. An open-ended questionnaire to the attending member of the family; by the attending physician in emergency was carried out in the emergency department KAH, during the period from April 1992 to May 1995. Kerosene poisoning was observed to be more common in children aged 1-3 years [86.5%], living in overcrowded homes [89.5%], with poor facilities [83.5%], and in homes where kerosene was stored in beverage containers easily accessible to the children, 80.5% of the families sought medical help within the first 2 hours after ingestion. Knowledge of toxic nature of kerosene was lacking in most of the families. The study indicated that kerosene poisoning was common in children of families living in overcrowded homes with minimum facilities, in which kerosene was easily accessible to children. Public awareness is needed to educate the families of the hazards of kerosene poisoning