Host: The Japanese Society of Toxicology
Name : The 51st Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society of Toxicology
Date : July 03, 2024 - July 05, 2024
When treating a patient with poisoning, the patient may or may not be known to be " poisoning" of some kind. Therefore, it is important to always consider the possibility of "symptoms due to poisoning" when treating patients. In particular, "unexplained symptoms" is a key word to suspect poisoning. There are also situations in which a patient is known to be poisoned by something but does not know "what" he or she is poisoned by. In such cases, the toxidrome is used to identify the substance that is poisoning the patient. The term "toxidrome" was coined from "toxic syndrome" and was first used around 1970. It is used as a concept for emergency response by classifying the causative agent of poisoning based on symptoms and signs, and there are various ways of classification. In the ACLS (Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support) EP (experienced provider) course, there are five classifications: sympathomimetic, cholinergic, anticholinergic, opioid, and sedative/hypnotic, which are commonly used in clinical practice. On the other hand, the Advanced Hazmat Life Support (AHLS) course, which is an educational course on responding to toxic gases and chemicals, has five classifications: irritant gas, asphyxiant, cholinergic, corrosive substance, and halogenated hydrocarbon. The classification should be made according to the symptoms and signs of the situation. In any case, the significance of classification by toxidrome is that it can lead to necessary emergency treatment even if the causative drug or toxicant is not identified. The "Standard Medical Guide to Acute Poisoning," supervised by the Japanese Society for Clinical Toxicology, also emphasizes this point, allocating a chapter to the toxidrome and explanations of various clinical tests, including analyses to complement it, as the standard approach in the treatment of acute poisoning.
