Intentional exposures account for 12.3 percent of all exposures, with the majority of these being suicide attempts or gestures. It is within this group that the majority of serious outcomes are noted. Advice given for suspected food poisoning cases represents 1.1 percent of exposures. This does not reflect the total number of food poisoning cases in our State. The MPCS, like most poison centers, primarily provides information on acute poisonings.
Chronic exposures tend to require more in-depth care beyond advice over the telephone.
The System provides information to clinicians about the chronic toxicity of substances when these patients are evaluated. This route accounts for 74.0 percent of exposure calls. Inhalation of gases, vapors, and fumes are the route of exposure in 6.3 percent of calls. As there can be more than one route of exposure per incident, the total routes of exposure are greater than the number of exposures. The above table lists the primary substances, involved for each exposure type.