Carbon monoxide poisoning as a cause of death in Wuhan, China: A retrospective six-year epidemiological study (2009–2014)

• Carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning deaths in the mainland China are scarcely studied.
• This is arguably the first comprehensive study that sampled the mainland Chinese.
• This study explores the incidence trend of CO poisoning deaths in Wuhan (2009–2014).
• A total of 131 CO poisoning cases resulted in the death of 156 victims are examined.

Carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning is a common cause of death globally, and case reports and empirical studies on CO poisoning are widely examined. However, to the authors’ knowledge, CO poisoning deaths in the mainland China are scarcely studied. Therefore, this study aims to explore the incidence trend of CO poisoning deaths that occurred in Wuhan – a mega city in Central China – for a six-year period (2009–2014). This arguably is the first comprehensive study to provide an overall analysis of CO poisoning deaths that sampled the mainland Chinese population. Using the data provided by the legal physicians who are employed in nine districts of Wuhan, a total of 131 cases of CO poisoning that resulted in the death of 156 victims are collected. Out of the total, 76 cases (97 deaths) are classified as accidents, 49 cases (51 deaths) are suicides, three cases (four deaths) are homicides, one case (three deaths) is homicide–suicide, and one case (one death) is classified as undetermined. Male victims are found to be the dominant sex group (53.5%; N = 83); with a mean age of 44.9 years, while female victims averagely aged 46.1 years. The highest death occurring month is in January, and followed by February and December. Coal or charcoal burning is found to be the major cause of suicide CO poisoning death (66.7%), while fire accident is the major cause of accidental CO poisoning death (60.8%) in Wuhan during the six-year period.