Are poisonings inflicted upon others always criminal?

While self-poisoning is a common cause for hospitalization, in the experien ce of our toxicological intensive care unit and emergency department, poiso ning of other persons appears to be quite rare. We identified 32 patients i n a non-exhaustive review of patients presenting over a 28-y period who had been unequivocally poisoned by others. We examine here the circumstances l eading up to these poisonings, along with their clinical outcomes, and prop ose a classification scheme based on underlying intent.