{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,20]],"date-time":"2026-10-20T21:57:40Z","timestamp":1792533460523,"version":"4.5.0"},"reference-count":50,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"17","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,8,23]],"date-time":"2025-08-23T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1755907200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["JCM"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Objectives: Acute drug poisoning represents a significant public health issue among the pediatric population. The aim of this study was to evaluate the characteristics of drug poisoning in children and adolescents in the Vojvodina region from 2018 to 2023. Methods: In a retrospective observational study, 82 patients with confirmed drug poisoning were included, and data was collected regarding demographic characteristics, clinical manifestations, types of drugs involved, and the therapeutic interventions administered. The severity of poisonings was evaluated using the Poisoning Severity Score, and toxicological analysis was performed using gas chromatography\u2013mass spectrometry. Results: The results indicated that poisonings were most prevalent in adolescent girls (72%), with 78% of cases resulting from intentional poisoning, while unintentional poisoning was more common in children. Benzodiazepines, antipsychotics, and analgesics were the primary drugs causing these poisoning incidents. The majority of patients (78%) experienced mild clinical symptoms, whereas 9% of pediatric patients suffered from severe poisoning, related to complications such as aspiration pneumonia and acute renal failure. Addressing pediatric drug poisoning in Vojvodina requires an increased focus on preventive strategies, including parental education and appropriate psychosocial support for the youth. Conclusions: Through collaborative efforts among healthcare providers, educators, and policymakers, prevention, treatment, and support mechanisms can be enhanced to combat this pressing public health challenge.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/jcm14175967","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,8,25]],"date-time":"2025-08-25T00:09:53Z","timestamp":1756080593000},"page":"5967","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":3,"title":["Pediatric Drug Poisoning in Vojvodina, Serbia: A Retrospective Observational Clinical and Toxicological Assessment"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"14","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0002-3269-5815","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jovan","family":"Baljak","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Center for Forensic Medicine, Toxicology and Molecular Genetics, Clinical Center of Vojvodina, Hajduk Veljkova 3, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia"},{"name":"Faculty of Medicine, University of Novi Sad, Hajduk Veljkova 3, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Aleksandra","family":"Stojadinovi\u0107","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute for Child and Youth Health Care Vojvodina, Hajduk Veljkova 3, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia"},{"name":"Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Novi Sad, Hajduk Veljkova 3, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Dragan","family":"Ze\u010devi\u0107","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"International Center for Cardiovascular Diseases, MC Medicor, Polje 40, 6310 Izola, Slovenia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Maja","family":"\u0110urendi\u0107-Brenesel","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Center for Forensic Medicine, Toxicology and Molecular Genetics, Clinical Center of Vojvodina, Hajduk Veljkova 3, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Nik\u0161a","family":"Ajdukovi\u0107","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Center for Forensic Medicine, Toxicology and Molecular Genetics, Clinical Center of Vojvodina, Hajduk Veljkova 3, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4186-9047","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Du\u0161an","family":"Vapa","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Center for Forensic Medicine, Toxicology and Molecular Genetics, Clinical Center of Vojvodina, Hajduk Veljkova 3, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia"},{"name":"Department of Forensic Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Novi Sad, Hajduk Veljkova 3, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Miljana","family":"Popari\u0107","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Medicine, University of Novi Sad, Hajduk Veljkova 3, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia"},{"name":"Institute for Child and Youth Health Care Vojvodina, Hajduk Veljkova 3, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"David","family":"Strili\u0107","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Medicine, University of Novi Sad, Hajduk Veljkova 3, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Nata\u0161a","family":"Tomi\u0107","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Clinical for Anesthesia, Intensive Care and Pain Therapy, Clinical Center of Vojvodina, Hajduk Veljkova 3, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Aleksandar","family":"Ra\u0161kovi\u0107","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Novi Sad, Hajduk Veljkova 3, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,8,23]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"10","DOI":"10.4274\/TP.2022.85057","article-title":"Retrospective analysis of the pediatric intoxication cases","volume":"3","author":"Ozan","year":"2022","journal-title":"Trends Pediatr."},{"key":"ref_2","first-page":"140","article-title":"Evaluation of children and adolescent cases admitted to the pediatric emergency department for drug intoxication","volume":"8","year":"2021","journal-title":"Evaluation"},{"key":"ref_3","unstructured":"Soave, P.M., Curatola, A., Ferretti, S., Raitano, V., Conti, G., Gatto, A., and Chiaretti, A. 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