Between 2014 and 2020, 130 children aged under 6 were admitted to intensive care due to cannabis poisoning.
- Between 2014 and 2020, poison control centers recorded more than 20,000 cases of accidental poisoning per year among children under 15 years old.
- Cannabis poisoning was responsible for “23% of intensive care admissions” among children under six years old.
- The ingestion of button batteries was the cause of 6% of serious cases of accidental pediatric poisoning.
Cleaning and maintenance products, medications, carbon monoxide… These are the most common causes of accidental poisoning in young children. However, a worrying increase in children hospitalized after inhaling or ingesting cannabis has also been recorded. This was recently revealed the latest inventory published by the National Health Security Agency (ANSES).
Cannabis, “the leading cause of admissions to intensive care for poisoning” among young children
In this report, she used different health databases to provide an overview of accidental poisonings among children under 15 between 2014 and 2020 in France. According to sources, each year, more than 20,000 cases of accidental pediatric poisoning are recorded by Poison Control Centers. Regarding emergency room visits, there are around 9,100 cases per year. In total, nearly 3,800 hospitalizations have been recorded each year in France. Finally, around 6 deaths per year have been reported.
According to ANSES, poisoning by drugs, including cannabis, is not at the top, but is becoming more and more frequent and serious. “They were the cause of 7% of hospitalizations for poisoning in children under six years of age, but 23%, i.e. the primary cause, of admissions to intensive care for poisoning for this same age group.” Cases also increased among babies under one year old in the time period analyzed, more precisely from 9% of hospitalizations for poisoning in 2014 to 16% in 2020.
Pediatric poisoning: button batteries cause 6% of serious cases
Another cause of accidental pediatric poisonings which worries health authorities: the ingestion of button batteries. These small objects represented only 1% of poisonings recorded by Poison Control Centers, but they were the cause of 6% of serious cases. “Nineteen children had swallowed a button battery, including one who ultimately died from a perforation of the esophagus and aorta. Another child had ingested a water ball, causing digestive complications and his death. For these two deaths, the ingestion of the foreign body had gone unnoticed at the time of the accident, which had delayed medical treatment.
“The frequency and severity of accidental pediatric poisonings, in all their diversity, encourage us to continue and even strengthen communication with the general public, especially with young parents and child professionals, so as not to underestimate certain risks and to reduce the number of accidents”, concluded the Agency.
