Author: Davies, John E., MD, MPH
Date Published: 1987
Since 1945, some 15,000 individual compounds and more than 35,000 different formulations have come into use as pesticides. During this period, as a result of the widespread use of these agents, and particularly the organophosphorus insecticides, physicians have been called on to diagnose and manage a large number of poisonings. Most frequently, these present as life-threatening cholinergic crises, with miosis, sweating, and salivation, but with appropriate therapy, including the administration of atropine and pralidoxime, recovery usually follows within a few days.