Currently, there are cases of poisoning in Bukavu without any form of proof. The purpose of this study is to verify the belief of the inhabitants of this city on the existence of cases of poisoning which would be at the root of several deaths attributed to cardiac arrest. A questionnaire was sent to 200 people from different socio-professional categories. The Statistical Package of Social Sciences software was used to process the data and the Chi-square test was used to test statistical dependence between variables. It appears from our various investigations that : (a) cases of poisoning were confirmed in the city of Bukavu which we ourselves confirmed by a qualitative test (b) hatred or jealousy was recorded as the major cause of the poison. As for the sources of the poison, Gecko was considered as the basic raw material for manufacture, (c) vomiting and diarrhoea are the two most frequent antidotal effects in patients. After statistical analysis, we noticed a significant relationship at the threshold (α = 1%) between the measured variables. Moreover, at the level of each socio-professional category, competition linked to the attainment of a high rank would justify these cases of poisoning, thus stirring up hatred or jealousy. It is therefore obvious that poisoning exists in Bukavu and that recourse to traditional medicine is a priority in cases of suspicion before going to hospital.

Keywords : Antidotes, Bukavu, Poison, Symptoms, Treatment.