Suspicion of needle pricking/spiking in 2022 in Paris, France, an observational study from the Department of Forensic Medicine.

Background: Needle pricking, the act of being intentionally pricked by an assailant, and needle spiking, the covert injection of substances using a needle, have historical precedents and recently resurfaced in Europe in 2022. This resurgence presented a challenge for emergency and forensic medicine departments.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective study in the forensic medicine department of Paris, France, including all patients who consulted for suspected needle pricking/spiking in 2022, following a police report.

Analysis of homemade cannabis edibles by UHPLC-HRMS after standard addition method.

With recent evolution of cannabis legalization around the world, cannabis edibles are booming, and determining their concentration in Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9-THC), the regulated psychoactive substance, remains a challenge for toxicology laboratories, which must prove whether the product has legal status or not. Cannabinoids are a large family of structurally similar and lipophilic molecules, requiring dedicated pre-analytical methods, as well as efficient chromatographic separation to differentiate cannabinoid isomers which are distinguished by their psychoactive properties and their legal status. Here, we present two independent cases of cannabis edibles, for which we performed analysis of homemade cannabis chocolate cakes and of the resins and herbs used for cooking.

Short message service as a tool for mass follow-up of patients requesting a poison centre: a retrospective comparative study in France.

Introduction: The short message service is an alternative to telephone follow-up of exposure cases reported to poison centres. The aim of this study was to compare the proportion of exposure cases successfully followed up and the respective cost of telephone and short message service follow-up between two poison centres, one using both methods of follow-up (Paris centre) and the other using telephone follow-up only (Nancy centre).

Methods: In 2021, we included cases eligible for short message service follow-up at both centres.

Pro-active drug-facilitated crimes (DFC): a study in the Department of Forensic Medicine of Paris, France.

Introduction: Proactive drug facilitated crime (DFC) is the administration of psychoactive substances (PAS) for criminal purposes without the victim's knowledge or by force. In Paris, France, patients who report suspected proactive DFC to the police are examined at the Department of Forensic Medicine (DFM) of the Hôtel-Dieu Hospital. Preventively blood and urine samples are collected but not systematically analyzed by the judicial authority.

[Prevalence, consequences of female genital mutilation among asylum seekers in Ile-de-France and socio-demographic characteristics].

Introduction: Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is an intervention on the female genital organs for non-medical reasons. In France, asylum is possible for girls at risk of FGM in their country of origin. The procedure includes a forensic examination of the child.

Risk of occupational infection in forensic workers: a review.

The occupational risk of infection in forensic workers is a cause for concern, furthermore in the current context of the coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) pandemic. In order to characterize this risk, we performed an extended review of the literature on occupational infections occurring in forensic workers. Seventeen articles were included.

Trends in adverse drug reactions related to oral weak opioid analgesics in therapeutic use in adults: A 10-year French vigilances retrospective study.

Aim: To describe the symptoms, patient demographics, and trends over time of adverse drug reactions (ADRs) related to weak opioid analgesics reported to the French vigilance networks.

Methods: Retrospective study of data from French Poison Control Centers and Pharmacovigilance Centers databases of weak opioid analgesics-related ADRs cases, with high causality score, in adults, in therapeutic analgesic use, without co-exposure, between 2011 and 2020.

Results: The number of cases was 388 in the Poisonings database and 155 in the Pharmacovigilance database; ratio of the number of these cases to all reported cases during the study period was 0.

Male Victims of Rape: An Observational Study over Four Years in Paris, France.

Sexual violence is a common and under-reported form of violence that affects all categories of individuals. We sought to provide epidemiological data on men aged 15 years and over, victims of rape or suspecting a rape, and who reported it to the police. We conducted a retrospective study at the Department of Forensic Medicine of Hôtel-Dieu, Paris, France, between 2018 and 2021.

Possible impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the recreational use of nitrous oxide in the Paris area, France.

Introduction: Recreational use of nitrous oxide (NO) is increasing in Western countries, including France. During the COVID-19 pandemic, some authors warned that recreational NO use could increase further as the supply of illicit drugs was impacted by various containment measures.

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed NO exposures reported to the Paris Poison Control Center (France) from 2010/01/01 to 2021/04/15.

Usefulness of lead isotopes analysis in a pediatric case of chronic lead poisoning.

Identifying the source of lead is a key measure in the management of childhood lead poisoning. In cases with multiple potential sources or with unusual circumstances, this identification can be complex. By comparing the lead isotopic ratios (IRs) between the potential sources and the blood sample from the patient, it is possible to identify which source caused the poisoning.

Loss of Consciousness and Visual Hallucinations Related to 5-MeO-DALT Intake, a Case Report Confirmed by Toxicological Analyses.

5-MeO-DALT or 5-methoxy-N,N-diallyltryptamine is a derivative of tryptamines, consumed for its hallucinogenic and entheogenic effects. We report the case of a 46-year-old-man, presenting with a brief loss of consciousness and visual hallucinations, after the consumption of three 5-MeO-DALT tablets bought online. Liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry method was performed, and 5-MeO-DALT was quantified in both the tablets (32.

Exposure to immediate-release tramadol in children 6 years and under - a nationwide French poison control center study.

Introduction: Data regarding immediate-release (IR)-tramadol exposures in children remain sparse. We aimed to investigate the incidence of IR-tramadol exposures in ≤6-year-old children, to describe the characteristics and resulting outcome of ingestions involving IR-tramadol alone, and to estimate a clinically relevant toxic dose in this population.

Methods: Retrospective analysis of IR-tramadol exposures in ≤6-year-old children, collected by the French Poison Control Centers (PCCs) in 2003-2019.

[Acute and chronic toxicities associated with the use and misuse of nitrous oxide: An update].

Nitrous oxide (NO) is used since the eighteenth century as an anesthetic and analgesic but also for recreational use. If the labelled uses of NO and their modalities are nowadays perfectly framed, the misuse of NO takes very alarming proportions among teenagers and young adults. This misuse is the cause of acute (hypoxia, barotrauma, burns, neuropsychiatric disorders) and chronic complications if repeated (myeloneuropathy, anemia, thrombosis, inhalant use disorder).

Bowel obstruction following ingestion of superabsorbent polymers beads: literature review.

Rationale: Superabsorbent polymers are marketed as toys, and cases of ingestion in children are increasingly reported. Even if these cases are usually considered benign, bowel obstruction has been reported.

Objective: To investigate the exposure characteristics, clinical presentation, management, and outcome of patients who developed bowel obstruction following ingestion of superabsorbent polymer-made products.

Aortic dissection in a body packer: Did cocaine play a part?

Body packing is defined as the ingestion of drug packets, to conceal them during transportation. We report the case of a 63-year-old cocaine body packer, who died from an aortic dissection. He was arrested in Paris as he disembarked from a flight from Cayenne (French Guinea) and custom officers found cocaine in his suitcase.