Perfil das intoxica？？es na infancia atendidas pelo Centro de Informa？？o Toxicológica do Rio Grande do Sul (CIT/RS), Brasil

this was an analytical, descriptive, cross-sectional study to establish the profile of poisonings among children 0 to 4 years of age reported to the rio grande do sul state toxicology information center (cit/rs) in porto alegre, brazil, 2003. a total of 1,311 cases were selected and data were extracted on children who had suffered individual accidental poisoning inside the home. from a systematic random sample of 286 patients, 21 interviews were held with the children's parents or guardians, using a structured instrument. the typical profile of poisoning featured: < 1 year age bracket; male gender; oral exposure; poisonous agent located on living room or bedroom floor; furniture height < 30cm; time of poisoning from 18:01 to 22:00; time between poisoning and search for emergency medical care less than 30 minutes; analgesics as poisonous agent; medical assessment of purported poisoning as non-toxic, evolving to cure. the data indicate relevant characteristics as to the time of poisoning and place where poisonous agents were located. definition of a profile helps promote and expand childhood poisoning prevention campaigns by public health agencies.