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Can Cs Gas Cause Asthma

Chloroacetophenone Other Tear Gas Agents And Zinc Chloride

What is CS Tear Gas? – One Minute Medical School News

Crowd control agents , as opposed to the war gases, are intended to incapacitate persons via immediate mucous membrane irritation.154 The agents in greatest use worldwide are chloroacetophenone and orthochlorobenzamalonitrile.155,156 In addition to their mucous membrane effects, these agents have also been implicated in lower respiratory injury and even in persistent effects following high-intensity exposures .157-160 Unlike tear gas, exposure to smoke bomb releases can cause severe lower respiratory injury by exposure to the potent respiratory irritant, zinc chloride fume, created through a pyrotechnic reaction between hexachloroethane and zinc oxide.161,162 Military, police, and others who are exposed, often during ill-conceived training exercises, are at risk.27,161-166

M. Sean Kincaid, … Leonard D. Hudson, in, 2008

How Exposure To Riot Control Agents Is Treated

  • Treatment consists of helping the affected person get more oxygen in his or her blood and of stopping agent-caused chemical burns from getting worse. Medications that are used to treat asthma may also be used to help the person breathe.
  • Eye exposures are treated by rinsing the eyes with water until there is no evidence of riot control agents in the eyes.
  • No antidote exists for poisoning from riot control agents.
  • Burn injuries to the skin are treated with standard burn management techniques, including use of medicated bandages.

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DEFINITION OF PROFESSIONAL ASTHMA

Occupational or professional asthma is defined as adult asthma, i.e., an inflammatory respiratory disease characterized by the existence of variable airflow limitation or bronchial hyper-reactivity secondary to conditions and causes associated with a given occupational or working environment not with stimuli found outside the workplace 1.

In 1993, Bernstein et al 1 defined professional asthma as “a disease characterized by the existence of variable airflow limitation and/or bronchial hyper-reactivity secondary to conditions and causes associated with a given occupational or working environment, not with stimuli found outside the workplace”.

Two centuries later, legislation in all industrialized countries protects the rights of workers. Nevertheless, a number of things remain to be done in the concrete case of asthma as a professional disease.

DEFINITION

REASONS FOR MEDICAL CONSULTATION IN THE WORKPLACE

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How You Can Protect Yourself And What To Do If You Are Exposed To Riot Control Agents

  • Since inhalation is likely to be the primary route of exposure, leave the area where the riot control agents were released and get to fresh air. Quickly moving to an area where fresh air is available is highly effective in reducing exposure to riot control agents.
  • If the riot control agents were released outdoors, move away from the area where the agents were released. Avoid dense, low-lying clouds of riot control agent vapor.
  • Go to the highest ground possible, because riot control agents will form a dense vapor cloud that can travel close to the ground.
  • If the release of riot control agents was indoors, get out of the building.
  • If you are near a release of riot control agent, emergency coordinators may tell you to either evacuate the area or shelter in place inside a building to avoid being exposed to the chemical. For more information on evacuation during a chemical emergency, see Facts About Evacuation. For more information on sheltering in place during a chemical emergency, see Facts About Sheltering in Place.
  • If you think you may have been exposed to riot control agent, you should remove your clothing, rapidly wash your entire body with soap and water, and get medical care as quickly as possible.
  • Removing your clothing:
  • Quickly take off clothing that may have riot control agent on it. Any clothing that has to be pulled over the head should be cut off the body instead of pulled over the head.
  • Washing yourself:
  • Disposing of your clothes:
  • Category : Burning Cs Munitions

    Asthma Respiratory Alkalosis

    The largest category of CS devices are munitions that disperse the CS using a burning filler to create a smoke cloud. CS melts at 93-96° C and boils at 310-315° C.

    The burning fillers, which are discussed at length below, heat up the CS, which vaporises and almost immediately condenses again, forming a smoke cloud. There is some possibility that solid CS particles also get suspended in the smoke from the burning fillers. It is this category of CS munition that poses the most hazards to health and property, for reasons that will be explained below.

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    Cardiovascular And Gastrointestinal Effects

    Irritation of the gastrointestinal tract due to ingestion of compounds like CS may cause nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and hematemesis., Various cardiovascular effects, including tachycardia and transient hypertension, have been observed in some individuals, likely initiated by sensoryautonomic reflexes or anxiety, pain, or psychological distress.

    Trpa: The Reactive Irritant Receptor Mediating The Acute Effects Of Tear Gas Agents

    The tear gas agents CS, CN, and CR are structurally dissimilar, suggesting they might bind to different targets .1). However, a single target, TRPA1, was identified as mediating the acute noxious effects of these agents and of many similarly acting chemical exposures., TRPA1 is also a TRP ion channel and, similar to TRPV1, is expressed in nociceptors. Pain neurobiological studies initially revealed that TRPA1 is the target of mustard oil , the paininducing and lachrymatory product in mustard, wasabi, and horseradish. Together with capsaicin, mustard oil was used as an important chemical tool to characterize the function of nociceptor subtypes in pain transduction. Mustard oil is an electrophile, and TRPA1 was also found to be responsive to similar naturally occurring isothiocyanates and related compounds in onions and garlic., Isocyanates, such as mustard oil, are electrophiles thought to act as defensive agents of the plants against herbivores. Mustard oil is not to be mistaken with sulfur mustard and nitrogen mustard, the blistering agents belonging to a different class of chemical warfare agents in mustard gas. While these agents share a similar odor with mustard oil, mustard gas exposure is not immediately painful and has delayed effects.

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    What Riot Control Agents Are

    • Riot control agents are chemical compounds that temporarily make people unable to function by causing irritation to the eyes, mouth, throat, lungs, and skin.
    • Several different compounds are considered to be riot control agents. The most common compounds are known as chloroacetophenone and chlorobenzylidenemalononitrile . Other examples include chloropicrin , which is also used as a fumigant bromobenzylcyanide dibenzoxazepine and combinations of various agents.

    Tear Gas Agents For Riot Control

    VERIFY: What is the difference between tear gas and CS gas?

    Over the past several decades, tear gas has been used as a common riotcontrol agent by law enforcement to quell protests, riots, and civil unrest. Tear gas use has dramatically increased in recent years, with very large amounts released in population centers in Turkey, the United States, Hong Kong, Greece, Brazil, Egypt, and Bahrain.,

    Tear gas is generally perceived to be a sublethal incapacitant. A 2003 analysis of several tear gases and incapacitants concluded that, on the basis of available toxicological evidence, commonly used tear gases have a large safety margin for lifethreatening or irreversible toxic effects. Another medical review published in 2013 concluded that, in the majority of exposures, significant clinical effects are not anticipated. However, there are debates surrounding the acceptability of tear gas use for riotcontrol purposes, especially in the background of the recent massive use. Many believe the risks of tear gas exposure are understated and that perceived risks are based on insufficient human epidemiological and mechanistic data.

    Chemical structures of commonly used tear gas agents ochlorobenzylidene malononitrile , 1chloroacetophenone , and dibenz1,4oxazepine .

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    Tear Gas ‘produces A Drowning Feeling’

    In Ferguson, Mo., police have been using tear gas to disperse crowds gathered for more than a week over the shooting death of Michael Brown, an unarmed black 18-year-old, by a police officer.

    When people are exposed to tear gas, the chemical agent activates the fine nerve endings on their eyes, skin, noses, airways and mouths, said Sven-Eric Jordt, associate professor of anesthesiology at the Duke University School of Medicine, who has studied the biological effects of tear gas.

    The effect? Eyes water and eyelids swell up. When a person inhales it, the body produces mucus.

    “That’s why many people feel tear gas can be suffocating,” Jordt said. “It produces a drowning feeling that your airways are filled up with liquid.”

    Some people vomit after being gassed, he said.

    The most common kind of tear gas used in riot control is called CS. It’s a solid that is shot through an aerosol, so it becomes a gas, Jordt said.

    Tear gas is especially dangerous for people with respiratory conditions, such as asthma and emphysema, he said.

    Exposure can cause irreversible damage to the skin, similar to a chemical burn, he said.

    How long the effects last depend on the level of exposure, Jordt said. There is no treatment. The best thing to do is to use “copious amounts of water” and soap, he said.

    Tear gas is commonly used by police to control riots, yet it’s banned by international treaty in warfare under the Chemical Weapons Convention, which went into effect in 1997.

    Health Effects Of Tear Gas Exposures

    Exposure to tear gas agents produces a wide spectrum of health effects, including acute and chronic effects. Studies have demonstrated specific receptormediated mechanisms of action of tear gas agents., Whereas these specific receptors contribute to their acute painful and irritant effects, the electrophilic reactivity of the agents, together with the toxicities of solvents and pyrotechnic reaction products, engages multiple toxicological mechanisms that remain to be studied.

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    Thermal Decomposition Of Cs

    There is a serious problem with heating CS to the temperatures encountered in burning CS munitions. Some portion of the CS will degrade into other chemicals.

    This is not something that is particularly well-known or heavily studied, but I was able to find some significant scientific literature about what happens when CS is heated to very high temperatures, such as those at the middle and high end of the burning CS grenades.

    Some studies occurred in the 1960s. In the late 1990s, a U.S. Army scientist, one Timothy Kluchinsky, studied this phenomenon and wrote his 2001 PhD dissertation on the subject. He has published extensively on the topic .

    In 1960, a Porton Down study in the UK identified and measured some CS thermal degradation products. CO, CO2, Cl-, NH4, N2O, C2H2, and water were all measured in CS. A 1969 U.S. Army study burnt CS and found CO, CO2, H2O, HCl, HCN, NH3, N2O2 and C2H2 in the smoke plume.

    The health effects and toxicology of this long list of substances are not very well studied. Kluchinsky commented that many of these compounds were created by CS molecules giving up either chlorine or cyanide. He eventually did work to quantify the amount of HCl and HCN emitted by CS under various conditions.

    Tear Gas Is Especially Harmful To Children

    Gas stoves are
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    The events this week in Tijuana at the U.S.-Mexican border have been stunning.

    Not only did we witness the use of tear gas on adult immigrants from Central America who were seeking asylum in the U.S., but on their children as well.

    A toddler covers his nose with his shirt to shield against tear gas

    Its important to understand what tear gas actually is, and how it can have an even more pronounced effect on children compared to adults.

    The use of tear gas on childrenincluding infants and toddlers in diapersgoes against evidence-based recommendations, and threatens their short and long-term health, said Colleen Craft, MD, FAAP, President of the American Academy of Pediatrics , in a press release yesterday.

    Children are uniquely vulnerable to physiological effects of chemical agents . A child’s smaller size, more frequent number of breaths per minute and limited cardiovascular stress response compared to adults magnifies the harm of agents such as tear gas, she added.

    Tear Gas 101:

    So lets explore what tear gas actually is, and dispel some myths surrounding its constituents and effects.

    To begin with, tear gas isnt a gas at all, but a powder that is heated and mixed with a liquid or solvent . It is released from canisters as an aerosol, with irritants that incapacitate you by causing pain and burning to the eyes, mucous membranes, throat, lungs, and skin.

    The Immediate Effects

    Potential Long Term Effects

    How To Protect Yourself if Exposed

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    Is There A Better Way

    Tear gas has been used for years without serious long-term problems, Cramer said. Alternative ways to disperse crowds could be water hoses or noxious noises. Its about as humane as any of those other techniques, he said.

    He said, though, that tear gas typically does not deescalate a situation. If a crowd shows no propensity for violence,” he said, “it seems like an awfully violent way to go about doing things.

    Accidental And Deliberate Fires

    It is very important to note that even burning grenades at the low end of the range of possible temperatures, a burning CS grenade or projectile can set other things on fire. Even spent grenades may still be hot enough under some circumstances to cause fires.

    CS grenades have been known to malfunction and have a condition colloquially known as a hang-fire wherein the ignition fuze malfunctions in some way and the grenade or projectile starts burning later than intended. Such a grenade, swept up and put into a rubbish bin or trash-pile, can cause a significant fire long after its intended use. These scenarios raise all sorts of problems, as a complex modern urban environment has many kinds of combustible materials. Plastics, synthetic textiles and upholsteries, woods that have been treated with finishes and varnishes, cleaning chemicals, and various other materials can create a bewildering array of toxic materials when combusted.

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    Lack Of Epidemiological Research In Tear Gasexposed Civilian Populations And High

    There is a significant amount of research examining the acute effects of RCA exposure among small samples of healthy individuals in controlled conditions, but little information has been gathered on the consequences of exposure in the field. A review on exposure to the CS tear gas agent attempted to compile case reports on the basis of PubMed and Scopus literature searches. The real-world conditions in which tear gas is used make it difficult to discriminate between the effects of different RCAs and to conduct effective epidemiological investigations. It is often not possible to ascertain the exposure concentration and duration among exposed individuals, and weather or terrain factors can further complicate analysis. Because of the difficulties associated with conducting epidemiological investigations of RCA effects and the lack of public support for these studies, few epidemiological studies have been published, and the reliability of the results is often deficient. The situation is further complicated by the fact that research conducted by various military organizations is often classified, and organizations may be denied access to health information during instances of civil unrest.

    Prevention Of Gas And Chemical Exposure

    How Asthma Causes a shortness in breath.A look inside your body

    The best way to prevent exposure is to use extreme care when handling gases and chemicals. People using cleaning products or other chemicals at home should work in well-ventilated areas.

    Gas masks with their own air supply should be available in case of accidental spillage. Farmers need to know that accidental exposure to toxic gases in silos is dangerous, even fatal. People should not enter an environment where poisonous gases may be present to rescue an exposed person unless they have protective gear.

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    As an immunologist, it scares me, said Dr. Purvi Parikh, an allergy and immunology doctor at NYU Langone Health. We just got through a brutal two months, and Im really scared this will bring a second wave sooner.

    It puts black communities in an impossible situation, said Dr. Joseph Nwadiuko, an internist and researcher at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine. Thirteen of the 15 coronavirus patients in the intensive care unit where he works are black, he said. I worry that one of the compounding effects of structural racism is youll see a second wave of black patients, including those who were out there defending their lives.

    On Tuesday, an open letter signed by nearly 1,300 medical and public health professionals urged the police to stop using tear gas, smoke, or other respiratory irritants, which could increase risk for COVID-19 by making the respiratory tract more susceptible to infection, exacerbating existing inflammation, and inducing coughing.

    Heres what you need to know about tear gas and how its being used by law enforcement in recent days.

    Tear gas can cause long-term harm, by making people more susceptible to contracting influenza, pneumonia and other illnesses.

    Tear gas is the generic term for a class of compounds that cause a burning sensation. Most law enforcement agencies in the U.S., including the Philadelphia Police Department this week, use a chemical called CS, short for 2-chlorobenzalmalononitrile.

    How Tear Gas And Pepper Spray Affect The Body And What To Do If You’ve Been Hit

    • Tear gas and pepper spray are being deployed on protesters around the country.
    • The products are generally safe, but can prompt asthma attacks, coughing, and sneezing, which can all spread viruses around.
    • The best thing to do if you’re hit by tear gas or pepper spray is to pour lots of water on the injury and seek fresh air.

    Tear gas and pepper spray have both been used to quell crowds over the past week as they march in cities across the US to protest police brutality .

    The two substances, known officially as “agent CS” and “agent OC” don’t typically cause permanent injuries, but they are both acidic substances which are harmful to people’s health and could be especially so during the coronavirus pandemic.

    When tear gas or pepper spray are dispersed in a crowd, it can lead to mass chaos as people scramble for fresh air. That means people are running, screaming, touching each other, and coughing, all of which can easily spread a virus.

    “It’s very, very irritating to the upper respiratory passages, and it’s going to make people cough and sneeze,” Dr. Dean Winslow, an infectious disease physician at Stanford Health Care, told Insider.

    Some people have experienced coughing and chest pains for days and weeks after exposure to the chemicals. Tear gas and pepper spray can be especially dangerous for people with asthma and other reactive lung disorders since the irritants can prompt an attack.

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