A literature review of cases of acute poisoning by petroleum and its distillates was conducted, while a new fatal case of suicide by gasoline intake is reported. Specifically, a number of studies were reviewed in order to update and summarize the relevant literature on the incidence, sociodemographic variables, method of poisoning, diagnostic - toxicological procedures, variables associated with survival and fatality on acute petroleum/gasoline intoxication. Results show that acute poisoning by petroleum and its distillates is relatively rare. Male prevalence was observed among patients, while most incidents were classified as suicide attempts. Oral ingestion was the most frequent method of intake, while a case of intravenous injection was also reported. The survival rates were low, as among all literature cases, two thirds of them managed to reach the hospital alive, and only the one fourth of them had a medically successful outcome.
Keywords: acute; forensic pathology; forensic science; gasoline; intoxication; petroleum; poisoning; suicide.