Jeyaratnam J
Department of Community, Occupational and Family Medicine, National University of Singapore.
World Health Stat Q. 1990;43(3):139-44.
The global problem of acute pesticide poisoning has been confirmed as extensive by a variety of independent estimates. Further, it is also recognized to be a problem confined to the developing countries. Most estimates concerning the extent of acute pesticide poisoning have been based on data from hospital admissions which would include only the more serious cases. The latest estimate by a WHO task group indicates that there may be 1 million serious unintentional poisonings each year and in addition 2 million people hospitalized for suicide attempts with pesticides. This necessarily reflects only a fraction of the real problem. On the basis of a survey of self-reported minor poisoning carried out in the Asian region, it is estimated that there could be as many as 25 million agricultural workers in the developing world suffering an episode of poisoning each year. This article emphasizes the need to control the problem on a collaborative basis by all concerned, including national governments, agrochemical industries, international agencies, scientists and victims.
各种独立评估均已证实，急性农药中毒是一个全球性的广泛问题。此外，人们也认识到这是一个仅限于发展中国家的问题。大多数关于急性农药中毒程度的评估都是基于医院入院数据，而这些数据仅包括较为严重的病例。世界卫生组织一个特别工作组的最新评估表明，每年可能有100万起严重的非故意中毒事件，此外还有200万人因试图用农药自杀而住院。这必然只反映了实际问题的一小部分。根据在亚洲地区进行的一项关于自我报告的轻微中毒情况的调查，估计发展中世界每年可能有多达2500万农业工人发生中毒事件。本文强调，包括各国政府、农用化学品行业、国际机构、科学家和受害者在内的所有相关方需要在合作的基础上控制这一问题。
