The 44th Congress of the European Association of Poison Centres and Clinical Toxicologists (EAPCCT)
5 July 2024
NPIS Cardiff recently attended the 44th annual EAPCCT conference held in Munich, Germany. The conference was attended by many clinical toxicologists and scientists from around Europe as well as Sri Lanka, the US, Australia, Israel, Thailand, Kuwait and China. There was a great scientific programme covering topics such as lung toxicity, toxinology and snakebite, drugs of abuse/recreational drugs, plant and mushroom poisoning and heavy metal poisoning. There were also presentations on the mechanisms of drug-induced seizures and methods of gastrointestinal decontamination in poisoned patients. The conference concluded with a session on the importance of collaboration between global poison centres and future challenges in toxicology.
Cardiff was well-represented at the conference. Oral presentations were given by Eleri Thomas on her study into intentional paracetamol ingestions in children and Nathaniel Keymer on cases of accidental intravascular administration of wound cleaning solutions. The unit also presented 4 abstract posters titled:
- Recreational mushroom ingestion in adolescents reported to the UK National Poisons Information Service over a 10-year period
- A case of severe Digitalis toxicity with an atypical response to DigiFAB treatment
- UK National Poisons Information Service data as a source of toxicovigilance to identify drugs with misuse potential
- A review of electronic cigarette exposures in children aged 5 years and younger
Both the oral and poster presentations were well received by other delegates leading to great opportunities for discussion. Those who attended benefitted greatly from the opportunity to network with the international toxicology community and have come away with improved understanding of certain areas within toxicology and ideas for future work in their role as specialists in poisons information.