Accidental childhood XXXX : influence of the type of caretaker on etiology and risk.

@entity1 @entity4968
The primary audience of poison prevention programs is the parent(s) of @entity1 less than 6 years of age. Literature review reveals few references assessing other caretakers as risk factors in childhood @entity4968 . The frequency and severity of calls to the poison center by nonparental caretakers was studied. A total of 4,205 @entity4968 cases involving @entity1 under 6 years of age were analyzed. In 11.9% of the cases the caretaker at the time of exposure was someone other than the parents and the site of the exposure was other than the @entity1 's home. Of the 3,702 cases where the exposure occurred while the @entity1 was supervised by the parents in their home, 90.2% were treated in the home and 72.4% required dilution only. Grandparents represented 39.6% of caretakers other than the parents. In these cases 44.6% required treatment beyond dilution, indicating more serious exposures in this group. Ingestion of cardiovascular drugs occurred in 12.3% of calls from grandparents as opposed to 0.7% of calls initiated by parents. Poisoning exposures involving @entity1 under six years of age, where the caretaker is other than the parents, and the site is other than the @entity1 's home, are often more serious. Poison prevention information programs are needed to reduce the risk factors among this group.
