Why patients choose paracetamol for self poisoning and their knowledge of its dangers

Paracetamol is the most commonly used substance in deliberate self poisoning.1 As a result, hepatic toxicity due to paracetamol accounts for over half of all cases referred to liver units because of fulminant liver failure,2 is the definite cause of at least 150 deaths a year in the United Kingdom3 and is now an important reason for liver transplanation.4 The reasons why people choose paracetamol for self poisoning and their understanding of its effects have been little studied. Nearly 20 years ago a study of patients with self poisoning by paracetamol admitted to London's King's College Hospital—a tertiary referral centre for patients with liver problems—showed that most patients did not know that paracetamol was dangerous in overdose.5 That study was conducted when self poisoning with …