INTOXICACION AGUDA POR FOSFORO BLANCO

ESTUDIO EXPERIMENTAL Y CLINICO (INFORME PRELIMINAR)

Abstract

Due to the socio-economic characteristics of Colombia, one of the pre-eminent methods of suicide, particularly in young people and of severe accidents in children, is the acute white-phosphorus intoxication and in spite of the importance of this problem, no adequate treatment was available.

The clinical research of white-phosphorus intoxication is made more difficult due to a great number of variants such as: time of consultation, vehicle used to swallow the toxic, previous nutritional state, different concentration of phosphorus in the pyrotechnical product, state of fullness of the stomach at the moment of inges tion of the toxic and early vomiting among other things.

In this preliminary report, we present the clinical study and results of treatment of 32 cases of acute white-phosphorus intoxication. Among these patients, 6 died, one from multiple intoxication and 5 hospitalized in the late phase did not respond to hepatic como treatment.

The other 26 patients were treated in due time with alpha-tocopherol and had a satisfactory evolution.

The low mortality rate proved the treatment to be efficient; the latter being based on biochemical, ultrastructural and physiopathologic studies of the mechanism of action of white-phosphorus as well as of the antioxidizing qualities of alpha-tocopherol. We think that this treatment has contributed to resolve the problem to which there was only symptomatic measures, therapy without scientific basis and in some cases prejudicial to the physiology of the intoxicated organism.

From these experiences, we consider that alpha-tocopherol is the basic treatment for acute white-phosphorus intoxication.