What’s the Latest Buzz on Beestings?

By Tony Burda DABAT and Sheri VanOsdol Pharm.D.

The incidence of bee stings tends to rise during the late summer and fall.  Recently, a suburban Chicago greenhouse worker died from a suspected reaction to a bee sting.  This unfortunate incident prompted us to summarize some simple first aid tips in the event that you are stung and how to avoid beestings.  Read more »

Back to School Means Changing Schedules…and Potentially Much More!

Well it’s about that time of August where parents are rejoicing and kids are groaning:  the beginning of a new school year.  For most families, their summer and school year schedules are drastically different, and the transition can take some getting used to. Below are some common poisoning hazards that can happen to you or your family during this time of year and tips on how to avoid them.

Read more »

Hot Summer Days and Medications: A Recipe for Heat Stroke

15 years ago I worked four straight night shifts during the one of the largest heat-related disasters in the Midwest; over 700 people died in the Chicago metropolitan area in just a few days during that deadly heat wave of 1995.  I vividly remember ambulances lined up waiting to bring another critically ill patient into our already full-to-the-gills ER.  In 2006, another killer heat wave engulfed the Midwest, but this time the public health infrastructure was ready and less than 30 people perished in a similar event to the one 11 years earlier.

It is once again summer in the Midwest and the temperature seems to be pushing 90 degrees or Read more »

::Illinois Poison Center State Funding Update::

We Did It!!

After months of diligently working to encourage Governor Pat Quinn and the Illinois General Assembly to maintain funding for the Illinois Poison Center in the new fiscal state budget (FY2011), our hard work has “paid off”!  The Illinois Poison Center is pleased to announce that Governor Quinn has decided to maintain funding for the poison center at the same level as the previous year.  We are satisfied that this base level of funding will allow the IPC to avoid closure and continue to provide an invaluable service to all who live and work in Illinois.  Read more »

Take Home Lessons: Kids and Cleaning Product Spray Bottles

By Tony Burda DABAT, and Sheri VanOsdol, Pharm.D.

You probably have seen or heard the story about the recent study released from the Journal of Pediatrics regarding the incidence of children treated in emergency departments due to exposure to household cleaning products.  Rather than quoting a lot of statistics, which you can find on other websites, we thought we’d give you IPC’s view on the article’s findings. 

Read more »

Copper Sulfate: Pool Cleaner, Vineyard Helper or Unsuspected Summer Threat?

By Harry C. Karydes, DO, Toxicology Fellow

An interesting case came into the Illinois Poison Centerthis week.  A frantic father called after his 3 year-old daughter inadvertently ingested copper sulfate.  During the case review, it was discovered that the father was using the product as an algaecide to clean their outdoor pool.  Unfortunately, he placed this liquid in an unmarked clear plastic bottle which to his unsuspecting daughter looked like a refreshing summer drink.  Read more »

Pharming: We’re not talking about planting crops, here, folks!

By Kris Ochs, Pharm.D. student

Have you heard of this  trend in teen drug abuse called “Pharming”?  Pharming refers to the practice of abusing prescription medications and over-the-counter (OTC) cough and cold products.  This includes taking a higher dose of one’s own medication than is prescribed, taking a drug that is prescribed for someone else, and, in the case of OTC’s, taking a medication in a different way than it is intended to be used in an effort to get high.  There are many reasons why this practice has gained popularity; some of them being that these medications are readily available in home medicine cabinets, on pharmacy shelves, and even easily purchased online.  Read more »

Watch Out for Those Scary Berries!

By Erin Pallasch, PharmD and IPC Call Center Specialist

Recently, I set out on a quest to determine which would be the scariest berry ingestion a parent might call the Illinois Poison Center about.  There are many toxic berries out there, but the one I would be most concerned with would be the Chinaberry. The ingestion of only 6-8 berries has been reported as fatal in a child.  The good news is we don’t have any berries this toxic native to Illinois. Whew! Chinaberries have a large range of toxicity depending on the region they grow in and although these berries can be found in Hawaii, Texas and from Florida to Virginia, the fatalities reported have been from eating the African species. I’m relieved to know I am not likely to get a call about these berries here at the IPC, BUT we have plenty of berries native to Illinois to keep us quite busy.   Read more »

Toxic landscaping and the ubiquitous Yew

A few years ago we published a case report of a fatal ingestion of the Yew plant in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).  It was one of two deaths reported to the Illinois Poison Center (IPC) due to this plant in the 12 years that I have been associated with the Illinois Poison Center.  Since last week’s blog was on poisonous plants, it seems like a good idea to continue that theme as this is a busy time of year for gardening and landscaping. Read more »

Native to Illinois, Jimson Weed is highly toxic and in season

Jimson Weed, (scientific name Datura stramonium) is a toxic  plant found all over Illinois.  Some of its other common names include devil’s trumpet, thorn apple,  Jamestown weed, stinkweed, and  locoweed. 

This plant grows throughout Illinois, either wild or as part of a planned landscape.  It has a beautiful flower that inspired Georgia O’Keeffe  to paint some of her most ambitious works. 

Jimson Weed however, contains anticholinergic compounds which cause a classic toxidrome “red as a beet, dry as a bone, blind as a bat, mad as a hatter, and hot as a hare”.   Read more »

Toxic Pyrotechnics and other Fourth of July Hazards

By Tony and Carol 

Every holiday season brings forth its own set of poisoning hazards to adults, children and pets. The Fourth of July holiday poses unique opportunities for a Darwin Award. No matter what the holiday, one potential toxin guaranteed to be ubiquitous is alcoholic beverages. As Tony says, recalling the old proverb for this particular holiday: “He who drinks a fifth on the 4th, does not go forth on the 5th.” Read more »

“There are Bold Mushroom Pickers, and There are Old Mushroom Pickers…”

…but there are no old, bold mushroom pickers.”

 By Tony, Connie and Carol

 Q.  What does days and days of heavy rain, plus humid weather, plus cloudy skies equal?

A.  Shrooms, man, shrooms.

Just as the weather has been conducive to mushroom growth and multiplication, the IPC has experienced a spike in calls concerning mushroom ingestions.  Over the past 5 years, the IPC typically averages 7 mushroom cases per week, May through September (also known as “shroom season”), but this year we’ve handled an average of  12 cases per week in late May and early June. That’s almost double the usual number!

Most mushroom calls to the IPC involve small children who become intrigued by the appearance of little brown mushrooms sprouting in the lawn, playground or field. Fortunately, most of these accidental poisonings do not result in serious complications; most often because the species was non-toxic or the quantity ingested was minimal.  More concerning however, are the less common situations where an individual or entire family consumes a meal prepared with collected wild mushrooms they believed to be edible but in reality are poisonous. Read more »

Did You Know…Poison Centers Are a Vital Part of Disaster Response?

In the event of a disaster, the Illinois Poison Center can play many roles:

• Provide patient treatment guidelines to health care providers at their respective treatment facilities
• Provide patient management information to on-scene emergency responders
• Assist in antidote procurement
• Answer calls from the general public on when to seek care for a potential exposure (triage) so as to reduce the surge of worried individuals in hospitals thereby allowing the facilities and staff to concentrate on the truly sick and injured
• Surveillance and real-time situational awareness through the volume and monitoring of calls received by the poison center Read more »

Could Grandma Be a Toxicologist ?

By Erin Pallasch, PharmD and IPC call center specialist

We all know that when something really frightening happens to a child, the first person we are most likely to turn to for advice is Grandma.  Whether it is our real grandmother or a friend/relative surrogate grandmother, she is always available with soothing words and the best advice that she has been doling out since we were babies ourselves. But while Grandma always has the best intentions, and is great to help calm us down, is Grandma really a poison specialist? Read more »

Summertime = More Calls at the IPC: 5 Reasons Why

By:  Carol and Tony 

Sunshine and warm weather are here. The days are longer, schools have ended, the critters are out and the flowers are blooming. Families are outside enjoying the company of one another and everyone is active.  Warmer weather means one thing for the IPC …call volume is on the rise.  Historically, we get about 10-20% more calls during the summer months, compared to the rest of the year.   So while you’re out this summer enjoying time with family and friends it is important to be mindful of these common summer substances that can be potentially poisonous: Read more »

My Favorite (poisonous) Fruit

By Carol,

Yesterday, I went for a walk around my neighborhood in the 89 degree temperatures and thought to myself– summer is officially here.  I went to the grocery store and spotted one of my favorite summer foods of all time:  cherries.   I bought a bag and as I popped one off its stem and bit into the sweet juicy flesh, I shouted (not literally) EUREKA, this is the poisonous plant I will blog about this week! Read more »

Memorial Day/Summer Safety Tips: Keeping kids safe from poisons in the garage

The air is a little less cold; the sun is out a little bit longer. Plans are being made for the spring clean up as we head into Memorial Day and warmer weather.  As parents, this is a great time of year.  Neighborhood kids who have been in a 4 month hibernation come over to play and we marvel at how big they have all gotten over the winter.  Laughter fills the air as the children run around playing baseball, football, soccer and other outdoor games.

As an ER doc and Director of the Illinois Poison Center, I have to point out however, that spring and summer are the times when pediatric unintentional poisoning peaks.  In Illinois, there are over 20% more pediatric poisoning events in the spring and summer then there are in the winter.  And a lot of that is due to access to potentially harmful chemicals that are found in the garage. Read more »

The Breakdown on K2

By Carol

If you’ve been watching the news or reading the paper lately, you may have heard about a legal marijuana substitute known by names such as K2, space, spice, magic potpourri, and the like.  The name K2 is presumed to be named after the real K2, a mountain in the Karakoram Range, that is the second highest peak on earth after Mt Everest. 

“So, What’s The Most Dangerous Poison Around The House?”

Toxicity Hazards of Household Drain Cleaners

By: Tony Burda and Irene Hong

The title of this piece is a common question asked by students, residents, and new employees undergoing training at the Illinois Poison Center (IPC).  I could come up with several things that are pretty scary for kids and pets to get into, such as charcoal lighter fluid or antifreeze.  But, in my opinion, the most dangerous chemicals that can be found in the average household are those used to open or clean drains and sewers. 

Tony:  This lesson was made crystal clear to me in a very tangible way shortly after starting to work in the poison center.  I had moved into an older home and discovered that the second floor bathroom sink drained slowly.  I tried using bleach and plunging with no improvement in the problem.  So I purchased some crystal drain opener, tossed in a spoonful into the drain, added water, and waited for the magic to happen.  Within minutes, I could hear the water literally boiling in the gooseneck of the drainpipe.  Strange smells emanated from the sink drain.  I became curious so I touched the drainpipe just to see Read more »

Inhalants: Basic information to unasked questions

This month, the Chicago Tribune published a tragic story of a life cut short by inhalant abuse.  Inhalants are one of the most commonly used methods to get high among young adolescents.  The Monitoring the Future surveys show that in 2009, 15% of eighth graders had abused inhalants in their lifetimes. Read more »

A Bewitching Fungus Among Us

By Carol

In honor of the warmer weather and sunshine, IPC will feature one toxic plant per month on our blog.  The plants of the world are filled with chemical compounds that interact with receptors in the human body and many of them have quite a long sordid history (and present) in art, literature and of course science and medicine.

Claviceps purpurea

I’m getting a little tricky here with the first plant post because my personal favorite toxic/medicine growing thing is not technically a plant; it’s a fungus: Claviceps Purpurea. It contaminates rye and other grains, especially when the weather is cool and moist and there is a delayed harvest. C Purpurea is responsible for ergotism, which is caused by the numerous toxins the fungus produces including ergotamine (the biggie), histamine, tyramine, isomylamine, acetylcholine, and acetaldehyde.  Recordings of grain contamination by C Purpurea date back to the stone tablets of 600 BC.  Ergotamine is a precursor for Lysergic Acid Diethyamide (LSD or acid), and is actually what Dr Albert Hoffman was tinkering with when he serendipitously discovered the hallucinogen. Read more »

I had to call the Illinois Poison Center

Last week, a Chicago Mom Blogger posted her experience with the Illinois Poison Center (IPC).  Accidental pediatric ingestions of potentially harmful substances make up over 50% of our calls in Illinois; we receive 40,000 to 45,000 calls annually regarding children 5 and under.  There are over 1.2 million calls in the U.S. fielded by designated poison centers from this age group.  It is an incredibly common story, but very often, an untold story. Read more »

How to NOT gas yourself while cleaning the loo

By Tony and special guest blogger Heather Ipema

A common telephone call to the IPC starts with a person coughing, sniffling, short of breath, and having difficulty finishing sentences.  The caller wonders if it is due to poisoning from mixing bathroom cleaners.

Determined to really disinfect the entire germy bathroom, the caller has made the common mistake of mixing household bleach (5% sodium hypochlorite) with an acidic toilet bowl cleaner.  They are shocked to learn that the combination of bleach and any acid results in a substance once used as a chemical warfare agent in World War I, and still considered a weapon of mass destruction today.  So, what is this nasty greenish-yellow vapor emanating from their commode?  It’s chlorine gas, and it’s poisonous. Read more »

May S.O.I. R.I.P. (May Syrup of Ipecac Rest in Peace)

By Tony, and guest blogger Lisa Klodnicki

During the past 10-15 years, the use of syrup of ipecac (SOI) to induce vomiting as a treatment for poisoning has fallen out of favor.  The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that SOI “should no longer be used routinely as a poison treatment intervention in the home” and that everyone should safely dispose of any SOI currently in their homes.  The American Association of Poison Control Centers (AAPCC) similarly published a position statement which recommended SOI use only under very limited, restricted circumstances.  This change of direction has come about for several reasons, including the fact that no studies demonstrate beneficial outcomes from its use, the risk for serious complications if SOI is given for the wrong indication, and the potential for serious toxicity with chronic misuse and abuse by patients with bulimia or other appetite disorders.  Statistics compiled by the AAPCC reveal that SOI was administered in 15% of all poisonings reported in 1985, while the incidence of its use has dramatically declined to 0.0484% in 2008. Read more »

Spring Fever and Poisonous Passion (aka Sexually Transmitted Poisons)

By Carol and our special guest blogger Dr Frank Paloucek

Sex and death share a history together in the arts and in medicine probably as far back as both coexist.  Normally, when you put the words ‘harmful’ and ‘sex’ in the same sentence, it would be one about sexually transmitted diseases (er, or maybe S & M).  But, did you know that poisons can also be transmitted via intimate contact and exposure to bodily fluids?  Reminds me of one of my favorite ‘statshots’ from the Onion®, on how ‘best to poison your adversary’:  “poison self, then have unprotected sex with adversary”.  Frank, who was my mentor in pharmacy school (and the man largely responsible for me being such a tox geek) happens to be an expert on sexually transmitted poisons (hey, everyone’s got to have a hobby) and he has graciously provided us with some of the strangest, most fascinating, but 100% true stories on how someone can be poisoned. Read more »