Caustic ingestions over 10 years in Victoria, Australia: High rates in migrants and women.

OBJECTIVES Caustic ingestion is relatively common in developing countries and can result in life-threatening sequelae. There is limited understanding of the epidemiology and incidence in Australia. This statewide 10 year audit aims to investigate this further. METHOD A retrospective review was conducted over ten years (2007-2016), including all admissions to hospitals in Victoria. This includes a population of 5.9 million people and 22 hospitals. RESULTS 384 cases of caustic ingestion were admitted to hospital between January 2007 and December 2016. The overall incidence was 7 cases/million/year. This cohort included 217 females (56.5%), 193 overseas born patients (50.2%) and 196 people (51%) with a history of mental illness. The countries of birth with the highest incidence of caustic ingestion were Ethiopia, 11 patients (227 cases/million/year, RR 31.7, p < 0.0001), Sudan, 11 patients (161 cases/million/year, RR 22.6, p < 0.0001), India, 38 patients (27 cases/million/year, RR 3.9, p < 0.0001). All had a significantly higher incidence than the Australian-born population of only 6.5 cases/million/year (RR 0.4, p < 0.0001). Of those born in India, Sudan and Ethiopia, rates of females were considerably higher than males (72% females). The overall mortality rate in this cohort was 2.3%. CONCLUSIONS Caustic ingestion remains a significant cause of morbidity and health expenditure in Victoria, particularly amongst vulnerable groups such as recent female migrants from areas in Africa and India. The high frequency of events seen in migrant populations highlights the significant need for awareness of risks in these groups for development of possible prevention strategies which are required. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.