The National Poisons Information Centre (NPIC) functioning at All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi has established a National Antidote Bank (NAB) to track drug poisoning cases, for the first time in the country. The NAB, set up using World Health Organisation (WHO) funds, is functional round the clock. There is a ready stock of 40 to 50 antidotes necessary to save the patients from most of the poisoning cases.

The NAB is also imparting expert guidance on the treatment modalities for such cases. Calls for poisoning information, poisoning consultants, health professionals, treatment guidelines and procedures, documentation and data analysis, pre-hospital and post-hospital management are all part of its routine activities.

Informing Pharmabiz.com, Dr SK Gupta, chief, NPIC said that drug poisoning accounts for 16 per cent of the total poisoning cases occurring in India. Going through the incidence of poisoning due to various drugs, he pointed out that analgesics and Benzodiazepines are common causes of drug poisoning.

According to NPIC data, the incidence of poisoning due to analgesics, anticonvulsants, antihistamines, ayurvedic and homoeopathic preparations, mixed synthetic drugs was 11.4 per cent, 9.9 per cent, 8.3 per cent, 9.1 per cent and 12.2 per cent respectively. Others were (37.42 per cent) oral contraceptives, thyroid hormones, antipsychotics, nitrates, iron etc. Ingestion of analgesics, anticonvulsants and antihistamines was more common in the younger age group whereas benzodiazepines were frequently incriminated in adults, says Dr Gupta

With the addition of NAB, NPIC has become a full-fledged centre for comprehensive information and aid. Dr Gupta said that the centre is equipped with the latest software to analyse any poison. Treatment modalities can also be advised on telephone. There is a 24-hour help line to give adequate information about the antidote and the dosage level.

The main objective of antidote therapy is to reduce toxicity and improve prognosis. "Unfortunately at times, their unavailability causes great difficulty to the treating physicians. Since they are not routinely required by many hospitals, they are not kept in the hospital pharmacy. Further financial constraints come in the way. The Antidote Bank at NPIC has eliminated all these problems. What we need now is to create sufficient awareness among the clinicians of the country on the existence of the centre," he said.

The NPIC chief also wanted proper networking of NPIC and other regional centers. "It should be connected online for management of poisoning cases. In case of emergency, there should be provision to make available the antidotes in the Bank to all regions of the country", he opined.

There are about 80,000 potentially toxic chemicals that are in use worldwide. These are substances varying from pesticides to detergents, drugs, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics, a whole range of food additives, preservatives, antioxidants and so on.