Since December 2009, our 283 blog posts have garnered nearly 1.4 million page views from 224 countries. Pretty impressive! To commemorate the 10th anniversary of our blog, I’ve chosen my favorite blog post for each year.
2009
Know the difference between Carbon Monoxide and Natural Gas?
You probably know that inhaling either carbon monoxide or natural gas is NOT good for you, but if you aren’t quite sure what the difference is between those two, you aren’t alone. Here’s important information for anyone who spends time inside a building (which is pretty much everybody).
2010
I think 2010 was my favorite year of blog posts and it was tough to pick a favorite! Ultimately, I’m going with The top 5 things you didn’t think could be poisonous to children.
Over 40% of the cases reported to IPC involve children age 5 and under, and most of those are 1-2 year olds who put pretty much anything they can get their hands on into their mouth. If you spend any time around little ones, you will want to read this. I bet the toxicity of these will surprise you.
(Since this is my favorite year I’ve included 2 honorable mentions: Recollections of the 1982 Chicago Tylenol cyanide poisonings and Toxic pyrotechnics and other 4th of July hazards)
2011
As a pharmacist, I have a soft spot in my heart for antidotes. This post looks at these fascinating treatments past and present.
2012
The 2012 winner goes to Sex, drugs, and the poison center. Mike lost our rock, paper, scissors duel and thus, ended up writing the 2012 Valentine’s Day blog. The subject? Viagra The result? One of the best IPC blog posts of all time!
2013
IPC’s My Child Ate… web resource post had to be my choice for this year. The My Child Ate (MCA) section of our IPC website has information on the toxicity of 46 products commonly accessed by toddlers and children. As I mentioned above (see 2010), many of IPC’s cases involve small children, and MCA provides parents and caregivers the option to go online to find toxicity information such as toxicity level, symptoms to expect, and what you should do. Since its inception in 2012, there have been more than 2.2 million page views—I think we will call that a success!
2014
I really enjoyed writing our “The Case of” series this year. A few short posts describing common unintentional poisoning scenarios goes to show that it can happen to anyone.
The case of the tube switcheroo
The case of the wrong container
The case of the secret ingredient
2015
Have you ever wondered what type of cases a poison center manages? Our Day in the life of a Poison Center post simulates a full 24 hour day at the IPC, chronicling over 200 cases that illustrate what a single day in the IPC’s 66 year history is like.
2016
Maybe you have never called the poison center before and don’t know the qualifications of the staff answering the phones, or aren’t sure of the types of things you can call us for. If so, Top 5 things IPC specialists want you to know before you call was written for you. Put 1-800-222-1222 in your phone and call with confidence.
2017
A bug has been swallowed. (I need to say no more)
2018
Matt wrote my favorite this year: The Toxicology of Breaking Bad parts 1 and 2. If you were a fan of the show, these posts do a great job explaining the drugs and chemicals featured in the popular series.
2019
Mike’s Cannabis: Vaping 101 post last year tells you everything you ever wanted to know about vaping THC—just in time for legal weed in Illinois in 2020.
We hope you enjoy the IPC blog as much as we enjoy writing it. Have an idea for a topic for us to write about? Put it in the comments below, post it on our Facebook page, or email us at IPCadmin@team-iha.org.
