British researchers found that a reduction in the standard paracetamol package led to a reduction in the number of deaths due to an overdose of 43%, according to an Internet publication for girls and women from 14 to 35 years old Pannochka. net This effect has affected not only the death rate, but also the number of liver transplants that are performed annually in the UK by people who have been poisoned with paracetamol.

Such curious data can be found on the website of the British Medical Journal.

Paracetamol overdose is a popular method of suicide in the West, because a high dose of this drug leads to irreversible damage and liver failure. In September 1998, the government of Great Britain proposed a new law that limited the maximum capacity of packaged products to 32 tablets (for sale through pharmacies) and 16 tablets (for sale through other channels).

The research team, which included scientists from several universities in England, found the benefits of such innovation in a couple of years, but some researchers questioned the effectiveness of the measure.

In this paper, scientists tried to study the long-term impact of the new law on the mortality rate due to poisoning in England and Wales. For this purpose, data from all local hospitals were collected on patients delivered with liver failure.

Data on paracetamol poisoning have been analyzed for the period from 1993 to 2009. To do this, the Department of National Statistics used information about patients older than 10 years who were poisoned with paracetamol. Data on liver transplantation were obtained from NHS Blood and Transplant.

Researchers immediately drew attention to a significant reduction in the number of deaths due to paracetamol in both regions. Compared with the period preceding the introduction of the new law, the overall decline in mortality was as much as 43%. For 11 years of the new restriction, this is equivalent to one thousand lives saved.

The number of liver transplants performed in the UK due to paracetamol-induced liver failure was 482 fewer than expected. In percentage terms, this decline is 61%.

Despite all the measures taken by the authorities, the number of deaths due to paracetamol poisoning remains high, averaging 121 cases every year. Scientists say that the first successes should not reassure the authorities. It is necessary to do much more to reduce the frequency of drug use as a poison.

In particular, it is possible to reduce the limiting content of paracetamol in one tablet (capsule). This will reduce the risk of accidental poisoning of children.

medbe. en.

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