The number of poisonings treated at the OAEOC has increased by 24 % since 2008 [9]. In comparison, the population of Oslo has grown by 8 %. Thus, the increase observed from 2003 to 2008 [9] has continued. GHB poisonings more than doubled (148 % increase), and there were substantial increases in ethanol (36 %), amphetamine (40 %) and cocaine (66 %) poisonings. In contrast, there was a decrease in fire smoke exposures. The proportions of ambulance referrals, hospital admissions and suicide attempts were largely unchanged since 2008 [9].

Total sales of alcohol in Norway has been stable since 2007, and total consumption among adolescents and young adults had been decreasing from 2003 to 2008 [19]. Still, the number of acute ethanol poisonings at the OAEOC has increased, many of them, as elsewhere [20, 21], in young patients in weekends. Studies from different European cities also report an increase in the number of ethanol poisonings over the last decade, especially among young adults and adolescents [4, 21–23]. It is possible that a segment of the younger population drink larger quantities than before, as some studies have shown [5, 23, 24]. If so, this is a disconcerting trend, as binge drinking carries the risk of serious consequences [25, 26].

Half of the young patients with ethanol poisoning were female. Though most studies report a majority of males [4, 5, 20, 21], similar findings have been reported from Slovakia [23], and a Swiss study showed an increasing number of young females with ethanol poisoning [22]. About 80 % of Norwegians under the age of 20 report having drunk alcohol. The proportion has been slightly larger for females than males during the last decades [19]. However, young females presenting with ethanol poisoning as often as young males, has not been reported in Norway before.

The increase in GHB poisoning is probably a reflection of more widespread use in Norway, consistent with the increase in police seizures [19].

Poisonings with novel central stimulant drugs were hardly seen. This contrasts with findings from the UK [2]. Ecstasy poisonings were few, similar to in the UK [2], and consistent with decreasing seizures by Norwegian police [19]. Poisoning with these substances may have been misclassified as amphetamine or cocaine, both increased compared to 2008 [9]. Amphetamine still dominated, as has been usual in Norway [27].

The widespread combination of opioids with benzodiazepines and central stimulants is worrying [28, 29]. Most fatal poisonings in Oslo are due to opioids, usually combined with other agents [15, 18, 30].

In 2008, 48 % of the patients were discharged without follow-up [9]. This proportion was reduced to 36 % in this study, mainly because many patients were enrolled in a new follow-up program for the young run by the Emergency Social Services. A major incitement for creating this program was the large proportion of patients discharged without follow-up shown in the 2008 study. The emergency setting is an opportunity for interventions to reduce alcohol and drug use and abuse, and such interventions should be encouraged [31, 32].

Only two percent of patients with suicidal intention were discharged without follow-up, a reassuring finding, as these patients have a higher risk of future suicide [1]. Compared to 2008, patients were referred to psychiatric outpatient treatment rather than hospitalised, after suicide attempts [9]. More detailed data on the follow-up initiated from the OAEOC, and whether the patients actually presented at the institution they were referred to, will be presented in separate articles.