. Pesticides: current trends in the use and epidemiology of acute poisoning (literature review)

Introduction. The widespread use of pesticides, which ensures the sustainable development of agriculture and global economic growth, necessitates the constant monitoring of their harmful effects on human health and the environment. Objective. To analyze and systemically review scientific publications on the prevalence of acute pesticide poisoning and trends in their use in order to identify the causes and structure of acute pesticide poisoning at the present time. Materials and methods. A search of the scientific literature is carried out in electronic bibliographic databases in the Russian (eLibrary, CyberLeninka) and English (Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed, Google Scholar, Cochrane Library) languages. Results. The risks of pesticide poisoning remain high in many countries of the world among both adults and children. In the structure of acute pesticide poisoning, household and suicidal poisoning with organophosphate and halogenated insecticides, anticoagulant rodenticides and pyrethroids are prevalent. Poisonings that occur at mass-, group- and family levels often have fatal outcomes, whether among agricultural workers or urban residents. The problem of acute poisoning with extremely dangerous limited-use substances based on aluminum or zinc phosphide is relevant not only in industrial agriculture, but also under domestic conditions and when working in personal subsidiary farms. Conclusions. Strengthening controls and ensuring strict compliance with sanitary and hygienic standards of individual and public safety in the storage, use and disposal of pesticides, as well as combating their illegal trafficking, will minimize the risks of acute poisoning involving pesticides under industrial and domestic conditions.