The daily morning journal and courier., 1906-09-20
CARELESSNESS IN HANDhlNu
 POISONS.
The Misuse of Medicines.

persons killed or injured in the United States in a year from accidents result ing from the use or misuse of medl- cines and poisons, has just been issued from the offices of the press committee Of the Proprietary association The figures were compiled from newspaper accounts of accidents of this nature in all parts of the countrywide reports be- ing furnished by six of the largest press clipping bureaus in the United States.
 During twelve months, from July l, accidents resulted19O5, to Jly 1, 1906, 2O4S accidents resulted from the mis- use of medicines and poisons, and Of these accidents S92 were fatal Car boic acid figured in 456 eases, of which 1s6 were fatal; and holds the undispu- ted first place among drugs and poi sons as an agent of injury and death. It was involved in 22.26 per cent. of all the cases recorded, and 20,S5 per cent. of all deaths. It was the cause of ten times as many accidents and nine times as many deaths as all of the hundreds of patent medicines.
 Of the 2,O4S accidents, 1,l62, or 56.92 per cent. of the whole number, resulted from carelessness in handling poisons of various kinds, ranging from carbolic acid to shoe polish. The remaining SS6 accidents resulted from the misuse of medicines. and of these 40 eases were attributed to patent medicines, the other S37 being due to medicines usual fly prescribed by physicians, These medicines are chargeabIe with 4O,S7 per cent. of all the accidents and 52,47 per cent. of all the deaths, while to pat ent medicines" are attributed 2.39 per cent. of all of the accidents, and 2.35 per cent. of all of the fatalities.
 The newspaper clippings on which this tabulation (which is the first of its kind covering a full year) was based, show great variety of accidents re- sulting from carelessness in the hand ling and use of polsons and medicines. As already stated carbolic acid leads with 456 accidents and 1S6 deaths; nor PlllllC i5 IllCA bGu WILL IVO SeinOo ctllO ATo deaths; laudanum with 135 cases and 65 deaths; wood alcohol with S1 cases and 70 deaths; arsenic with SO cases and 27 deaths; chloroform with 51 cases and 30 deaths, and all patent medicines with 49 cases and 2t deaths, In no single case does it appear that medicines of any kind caused death or itIY.Ny xNyIno taIY "A t6A praSprihaI doses. It was only when directions were disregarded, or the medicine left within the reach of children, or used bymistake that accident resulted Medicines and poisons left within the reach of children were the cause of a large proportion of the accidents. some of which were chargeable to articles of daily household use. For instance, r accidents and deaths were caused by fly poison being left where babies could get it, IA children drank kerosene, and large number drank gasolene, and In 10 cases children swallowed turpentine. Washing powder, bluing, washing soda, benzine, soldering acid, stove polish, shoe polish, printers ink, ant poison, polishing fluid picture gliding, and mosquito poison all contributed their quota of victims.
 One baby was killed by putting in its mouth a poultice that had fallen from @ boil on its fathers neck, and another, sitting on it's fathers lap, found tn his pocket some strychnine tablets which it ate, while the father dozed with fla tai results, Lye in some form was re- sponsible for 57 accidents, mostly to children, and was fatal in 16 cases. One prominent physician went to his
 medicine chest in the night to get a
 cough syrup for himself, and took car bolic acid instead; another physician
 took three times the regular dose of acetanilide an undertaker's assistant
 drank einbalming fluid in mistake for
 whiskey, and an editor, looking for the
 same thing, got dose of mosquito poi son instead. Not a few persons look ing whiskey in the dark got the wrong poison
 | Four luckless individuals who drank 1 bay rum as a beverage, lost their lives
 nine persons were killed by drinking Florida water, 24 children were made sick by eating castor beans the misuse of ordinary fiavorng extracts Injured eight persons, and several persons
 were injured because cook mistook
 arsenic for baking powder, OOne man drank a prescription of borax intended
 for spraying fruit trees, and 37 persons
 took corrosive sublimate by mistake
 These cases are fairly representative of the entire number.
 The tabulation includes several cases
 where the wrong medicine was admin tistered by trained nurses, and a few
 cases where medicine intended for in-
 halation was swallowed. and in practi-
 cally every case the carelessness ot
 some one was responsible for the inju-
 ry done, A strong movement has beer
 started to secure publicity for the in.
 formation included in the tabulation
 in the hope that, by having their at,
 tention called to the great number oi accidents that occur annually, parent.
 will exercise greater care in keepine
 medicine and poison s out of the reacf
 of children and also In taking medi
 cines themselves, or administering it tC others without being absolutely sure
 that they have the right medicine ant
 are taking, or administering, the cor
 rect quantity.
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