Epidemiology of coronial deaths from pesticide ingestion in Australia

Disadvantaged by More Than Distance: A Systematic Literature Review of Injury in Rural Australia

Rural populations experience injury-related mortality and morbidity rates 1.5 times greater than metropolitan residents. Motivated by a call for stronger epidemiological evidence around rural injuries to inform prevention, a systematic review of peer-reviewed literature published between January 2010 and March 2021 was undertaken to explore the epidemiology of rural injury and associated risk factors in Australia. A subsequent aim was to explore definitions of rurality used in injury prevention studies. There were 151 papers included in the review, utilizing 23 unique definitions to describe rurality. People living in rural areas were more likely to be injured, for injuries to be more severe, and for injuries to have greater resulting morbidity than people in metropolitan areas. The increase in severity reflects the mechanism of rural injury, with rural injury events more likely to involve a higher energy exchange. Risk-taking behavior and alcohol consumption were significant risk factors for rural injury, along with rural cluster demographics such as age, sex, high socio-economic disadvantage, and health-related comorbidities. As injury in rural populations is multifactorial and nonhomogeneous, a wide variety of evidence-based strategies are needed. This requires funding, political leadership for policy formation and development, and implementation of evidence-based prevention interventions.

Anticoagulant rodenticide use, non-target impacts and regulation: A case study from Australia

The impacts of anticoagulant rodenticides (ARs) on non-target wildlife have been well documented in Europe and North America. While these studies are informative, patterns of non-target poisoning of wildlife elsewhere in the world may differ substantially from patterns occurring in Australia and other countries outside of cool temperate regions due to differences in the types of ARs used, patterns of use, legislation governing sales, and potential pathways of secondary exposure. Most of these differences suggest that the extent and severity of AR poisoning in wildlife may be greater in Australia than elsewhere in the world. While many anecdotal accounts of rodenticide toxicity were found - especially in conjunction with government control efforts and island eradications - no published studies have directly tested rodenticide exposure in non-target Australian wildlife in a comprehensive manner. The effects of private and agricultural use of rodenticides on wildlife have not been adequately assessed. Synthesis of reviewed literature suggests that anticoagulant rodenticides may pose previously unrecognised threats to wildlife and indigenous people in Australia and other nations with diverse and abundant reptile faunas relative to countries with cooler climates where most rodenticide ecotoxicology studies have been conducted. To address the identified knowledge gaps we suggest additional research into the role of reptiles as potential AR vectors, potential novel routes of human exposure, and comprehensive monitoring of rodenticide exposure in Australian wildlife, especially threatened and endangered omnivores and carnivores. Additionally, we recommend regulatory action to harmonise Australian management of ARs with existing and developing global norms.

Forensic toxicology analysis of self-poisoning suicidal deaths in Tehran, Iran; trends between 2011-2015

Background

Suicide ranks among the top ten causes of death in all age groups all over the world. There are many methods for committing suicide including self-poisoning, firearm and hanging. The aim of the present study was to provide an overview of self-poisoning related suicidal deaths with special focus on forensic toxicology analysis results in Tehran, Iran from 2011 to 2015.

Methods

All suspicious cases with the the history of self-poisoning were investigated to define the cause and manner of death under the supervision of forensic medicine practitioners. Postmortem samples were analysed in forensic toxicology laboratory to confirm the presence of drugs in cadaver of suicidal cases. Drugs and poisons were analysed using thin layer chromatography, high performance liquid chromatography, gas chromatography/mass spectrometry, headspace gas chromatography and gas chromatography equipped with nitrogen phosphorus detector. Demographic data were collected from autopsy reports of all cases with confirmed self-poisoning suicidal cause of death.

Results

Results showed that 674 cases of self-poisoning deaths were investigated during a five-year study period, of which 68.55% were male. The most often used suicide method was self-poisoning in young population. Phosphine gas liberated from aluminum phosphide tablets was the most toxic substance detected in postmortem samples (619 cases) followed by opioids, methamphetamine, organophosphates, cyanide and strychnine.

Conclusion

In conclusion self-poisoning suicidal death was predominant in young male population in Tehran, Iran. It seems that free access to suicide means such as drugs and poisons should be restricted by national and health authorities.

Trial registration

Not applicable.