|  Ranking
search results
The signs and symptoms exhibited by a poisoned patient are the
health care provider's primary cues for determining which pesticide
may have caused the poisoning. Unfortunately, many pesticide poisoning
symptoms are non-specific and may resemble other illnesses. The
PAN Pesticide Poisoning Diagnostic Tool brings a number of other
information resources to bear on identifying the pesticide responsible
for the poisoning. These include the following:
 Symptoms
Registration
status
Name
match
Use
type
Geographic
location and crop/application site
Number
of countries in which this chemical is registered for use
Number
of current and historic registered products in the United States
Percentage
of U.S. crop acreage on which a chemical is used
Frequency
of use in California
Symptoms
Each symptom
is assigned a number of points from 10-50 based on its specificity
to the chemical in question. Symptoms that are not very specific
to a particular chemical (e.g., nausea, headache, eye irritation)
are rated at 10 points. Symptoms that are very specific to a particular
chemical are given more points.
Registration
status In
general, more points are assigned to pesticides actively registered
for use in the country in question. For countries in which obsolete
stocks of pesticides are still available and use of unregistered
pesticides is common, fewer points are assigned based on registration
status. The maximum number of points assigned is 50.
The United
Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (UN FAO) recently held
a workshop and released a paper on obsolete pesticide stocks, a
problem that affects almost all developing countries and countries
with economies in transition. Several programs are in place to help
countries deal with these unwanted pesticides, including the UN
FAO's Obsolete Pesticides Program, but estimates of the amounts
of obsolete pesticides stored in developing countries and countries
with economies in transition range from tens to hundreds of thousands
of tons.
References:
- Report of the OECD-FAO-UNEP Workshop on Obsolete Pesticides,
Alexandria, Virginia
September 13-15, 2000. Download.
Viewed on September 20, 2003.
- A. Wodageneh, FAO
Programme on Prevention and Disposal of Unwanted Stocks in Africa
and the Near East, UN Food and Agriculture Organization. Viewed
on September 20, 2003.
- Africa
Stockpiles Programme. Viewed on September 20, 2003.
Name
match If
the name entered is an exact match or a synonym of the pesticide
in question, the maximum number of points will be assigned. Chemicals
that are used in the same product with the active ingredient entered
in the search box will still appear in the list, but with fewer
assigned points. The maximum number of points assigned is 50.
Use
type When
a use type (e.g. insecticide, fumigant, etc.) is selected, the number
of points will be greatest for chemicals for which the specified
use type is the primary use type listed for that chemical. Fewer
points will be assigned to chemicals for which the specified use
type is considered a secondary use. The maximum point assignment
is 50.
Geographic
location and crop/application site This
criterion only applies to U.S. locations. If a specific crop or
application site is selected, chemicals legally registered for use
on that crop or site receive more points. Points are assigned based
on the percentage of the crop acreage to which the pesticide is
applied. Where no crop is specified, the total crop acreage is used
for the geographic area selected. Pesticide use data are available
for all California crops and counties. In addition, estimates are
available for all U.S. states. The maximum point assignment is 50.
Number
of countries in which the chemical is registered for use
Up to 10 points are assigned for chemicals that are registered
for use in a large number of countries worldwide.
Number
of current and historic registered products in the U.S.
Up to 10 points
are assigned for chemicals that are widely used in U.S. products.
Percentage
of U.S. crop acreage on which a chemical is used
Up to 10 points
are assigned for chemicals that are applied to a high percentage
of crop acreage in the U.S.
Frequency
of use in California Up
to 10 points are assigned for chemicals that are frequently used
in California, based on the number of applications of each pesticide.
This factor helps take into account more recent use patterns for
which data are available for California, but not other states.
Top
of page
Last updated
March 4, 2004
.
|
