Preferred Abstract (Original):
Objectives
The objectives of this study were to determine
the risk factors and life stressors that are prevalent among the acetaminophen
deliberate self-poisoning (DSP) cases, to identify gender differences in the
associated factors, and to determine the prevalence of psychiatric diagnosis
and the patterns and types of psychotherapeutic interventions provided by
psychiatrists.
Methods This is a cross-sectional study, a retrospective descriptive
case review of hospital admissions for acetaminophen DSP.
Results There were 177 incidences of DSP during the study period. The
mean age of the cases was 23.1 ± 7.3 years and 84.1% of them were females. The
risk factors were more significantly associated with males: chronic ethanol intake
(
p = 0.04), higher reported dose ingested (
p = 0.01), higher
latency time (
p = 0.04) and longer hospital stay (
p = 0.03). The
most commonly reported psychotherapeutic interventions used by psychiatrists
were psychoeducation of the patient, followed by referral to a psychiatric
clinic, family psychoeducation and psychotropic medication. Sertraline (SSRI)
was the most frequently prescribed antidepressant.
Conclusions Males have been shown to use more toxic doses and to delay
treatment due to high latency time. Most DSP patients have different life
stressors and psychiatric diagnoses that may be associated with varying degrees
of suicidal intent. All patients presenting following DSP need to be carefully
screened for psychiatric illness. Randomized controlled studies need to be
conducted on DSP patients with psychiatric illness to determine which
treatments are effective