Organophosphorus Poisoning in the Kashmir Valley, 1994 to 1997

To the Editor: An estimated 1 million serious accidental poisonings and 2 million suicide attempts involving organophosphorus compounds occur each year worldwide.1 India ranks second in Asia in annual pesticide consumption.2 We prospectively studied 164 patients (age range, 14 to 58 years) from different districts of the Kashmir valley, who were seen in the casualty department of SMHS Hospital, Srinagar, India, with a history of exposure to organophosphorus compounds between April 1994 and July 1997 (Table 1). Most of the patients (74.4 percent) had consumed these agents to attempt suicide. Phosphamidon was the agent most frequently ingested. Two thirds of . . .