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Poisoning with rat poison

 
, medical expert
Last reviewed: 15.10.2022
 
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To combat rodents that are bred in residential and non-residential premises, a special rat poison is used. It is commercially available, although it is highly toxic. The packaging in which it is sold contains detailed instructions on how to use it. But sometimes people ignore the rules, do not read the recommendations and, carelessly handling the substance, endanger the health and even the life of pets, and even children. Poisoning with rat poison is very dangerous and you need to know how it manifests itself and what actions to take to detoxify. [1]

Rodenticides or "rat poisons" are mixed compounds used to kill rodents. They are one of the most toxic agents commonly found in households.

Pathogenesis

Given the wide range of toxins used as rodenticides, symptoms will vary depending on the toxin ingested. Rodenticides are often classified on the label according to their degree of toxicity. [2]

  1. "Hazardous" or highly toxic rodenticides include thallium, sodium monofluoroacetate (fluoroacetate), strychnine, zinc phosphide, aluminum phosphide, elemental phosphorus, arsenic, barium carbonate. Rarely used or banned dangerous toxins are tetramethylene disulfotetramine (TETS, tetramin), aldicarb, alpha-chloralose, and pyrinuron.
  2. "Warning" or toxic rodenticides include alpha-naphthylthiourea (ANTU) and cholecalciferol.
  3. "Beware" or less toxic rodenticides include anticoagulants (superwarfarins, warfarin), norbormide, brometalin, and red onion.

To destroy harmful rodents, chemical compounds are used under the general name rodenticides. They belong to the preparations of intestinal action. The mechanism of toxic effects is determined by the substances on the basis of which they were created.

Usually, cereals are taken as the basis, flavored with fragrant vegetable bait oil, and coumarins, which are indirect anticoagulants, are used as poison. Once in the body of a rodent, they inhibit the formation of prothrombin, which leads to blood clotting, blood vessels are affected, and after a while, hemorrhage occurs in the brain. The individual dies.

Symptoms of the rat poison poisoning

Rat poisoning of a person (most often this happens to a child) manifests itself depending on its amount. The first signs, lasting a day or two, are expressed by a state of lethargy, depression, drowsiness, lack of appetite, and rapid fatigue. In the following days, there are bruises on the skin and bleeding from the nose, ears, gums, vomiting with blood, blood in the urine, feces, shortness of breath, headache, dizziness, pallor of the mucous membranes and skin.

Symptoms of animal poisoning, including dogs, cats, pigs (they are most susceptible to picking up leftover food), are similar to each other and appear two days after poisoning: vomiting occurs, feces are turquoise, shortness of breath, hemorrhages in deep tissues. The animal loses coordination, saliva flows strongly, foam from the mouth appears, trembling and convulsions.

Stages

When poisoning with rat poison, 2 stages are distinguished: asymptomatic (up to 2-3 days) and symptomatic, when clinical signs appear.

Complications and consequences

For animals, poisoning becomes fatal if adequate measures are not taken in a timely manner. For a person (with the exception of a small child), the life-threatening dose is too large (at least 150 g of poisoned grain) to eat it accidentally, but there is a danger of harming one's health, organs and systems.

Diagnostics of the rat poison poisoning

Diagnosis of rat poisoning is based on a story about what happened, symptoms, a clinical blood test (anemia is typical), determination of blood clotting time (normal value 3-6 minutes), a test for vitamin K deficiency (required for blood clotting, prothrombin).

To study the degree of damage to internal organs, instrumental diagnostics are used: ultrasound, MRI, CT, radiography.

Differential diagnosis

Poisoning with rat poison, when the incident is not obvious, is differentiated with liver failure, hereditary defects in hemostasis, disorders in the blood coagulation system, an absolute deficiency of vitamin K, which is possible when taking antibiotics against the background of malnutrition or certain pathologies of the pancreas, intestines.

Treatment of the rat poison poisoning

First aid for poisoning with rat poison, both for humans and animals, should be provided immediately and treatment should be aggressive.

In the first 2 hours, you need to induce vomiting, then it is ineffective. In animals, this procedure is more difficult, and yet you need to pour a liquid prepared in this way into your mouth: a tablespoon of soda (salt) in a glass of water or hydrogen peroxide and water mixed in equal proportions. Plentiful drinking is shown.

Treatment is with vitamin K1. Taking activated charcoal removes toxins well, but reduces the effectiveness of the vitamin.

In severe cases of poisoning, they resort to blood transfusion, and other symptomatic therapy is also carried out, aimed at restoring the affected organs.

Medications

Vitamin K1 can be found in pharmacies under various trade names: phytomenadione, phylloquinone, konakion, kanavit, K-Ject.

Phytomenadione is a clear viscous liquid with a slight odor. Therapeutic dose is 5 mg per kilogram of body weight per day, the course of treatment lasts up to 6 weeks, because. Blood clotting is disturbed for a long time. The drug is taken 3-4 times, but can be up to 6 times a day. Contraindicated in increased blood clotting, thromboembolism.

Polysorb MP - sorbs the poison that has entered the body and removes dangerous toxins from the body. Available in powder for suspension. For adults, a tablespoon of the drug is dissolved in a glass of water, for children (up to a year they are not prescribed) - a teaspoon, taken after shaking or mixing. In the age range of 1-7 years, it is recommended 150-200 mg per day per kg of body weight, older children and adults - 12-24 mg, divided into 3-4 doses.

Contraindicated in peptic ulcer, intestinal obstruction, during childbearing and feeding. Can cause constipation.

Animals can be treated with the drug diarkan, which prevents the absorption of toxins into the blood by enveloping the mucosa inside the digestive organs. It is prescribed 2 times a day with an interval of 12 hours (in severe cases 3 times after 8 hours) in doses: for animals weighing 1-5 kg - half a sugar cube (in this form it is produced); 5-15kg - a cube, 15-30kg - 1.5 cubes; 30kg and more - 2 cubes. The drug is hand-fed or added to food. If adverse reactions occur: vomiting, dermatitis, treatment is stopped.

Gamavit is a complex preparation of biologically active substances, used, in addition to other indications, for animal poisoning. Contains mineral salts, vitamins, amino acids necessary for the body. The solution is administered subcutaneously, intravenously or drip once, and the usual therapeutic dose (0.3-0.5 ml / kg) is increased by 3-5 times.

Specific treatment

Renal Replacement Therapy

  • Includes hemodialysis, permanent kidney replacement, or charcoal hemoperfusion for heavy metal poisoning such as thallium, arsenic, or barium.

Benzodiazepines

  • It is indicated for muscle spasms and convulsions, especially in strychnine poisoning. [3]

British antilewisite

  • Used for chelation in acute arsenic poisoning. [4]

Meso-2,3-dimercaptosuccinic acid (DMSA) or 2,3-dimercapto-1-propanesulfonate (DMPS)

  • Used for chelation in chronic arsenic poisoning. 

Sodium sulfate or magnesium sulfate

  • Specifically used in acute ingestion of barium carbonate, making it a non-absorbable barium sulfate compound. [5]

Nicotinamide (intravenously)

  • Used in cases of pyriminal poisoning to replenish NAD and NADH products for cellular energy metabolism. [6]

Mineralocorticoids

  • It is used for orthostatic hypotension in pyriminal poisoning.

Digoxin Immune Fab

  • Used for symptomatic treatment of red onion poisoning. [7]

Most importantly, clinicians should evaluate and manage patients in consultation with the regional poison control center or toxicology resource.

Prevention

Avoiding rat poison poisoning is easier than curing it. Therefore, the first preventive measure is the observance of safety precautions, proper storage of such products, laying out the poison in places inaccessible to children and animals, protecting hands with rubber gloves, training dogs.

Forecast

Animals often die from such poisons; immediate contact with the veterinary service can save them. For adults, the prognosis is favorable, and for children it depends on the dose and speed of therapeutic measures.

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