Medical manual of chemical warfare, 1943 / War Office.

  • Great Britain. War Office
Date:
1943
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Medical manual of chemical warfare, 1943 / War Office. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    the nose, even in low concentrations of vapour. It penetrates clothing and boots at about the same speed as lewisite, but is much less persistent than mustard gas. It is decomposed by water, but contaminates food or water with arsenic. As a vesicant, ethyldichlorarsine is considerably less powerful than mustard. gas, and as a nasal irritant considerably less powerful than diphenylcyanarsine. As a lung irritant it is rather less toxic than phosgene, and since the immediate irritation it causes will induce fit men to put on their respirators, serious. effects on the lungs should be seldom seen. The action of liquid and gaseous ethyldichlorarsine on the eyes is similar to that of lewisite, but the irritation and lacrimation induced by the vapour is evanescent. Drops of the liquid produce stinging and irritation of the skin with erythema in 1—2 hours and vesication in 4-8 hours. The vesicles. resemble those of lewisite, and symptoms of arsenica] poisoning may follow contamination of the skin. Vapour, too, may evoke erythema, though the danger is relatively small since the gas is unlikely to persist long in adequate concentration. The effect on the upper respiratory tract is transient ; but if no respirator is worn ethyldichlorarsine may produce. tracheitis, bronchitis. and later pneumonia. The Service respirator gives complete protection to the eyes, nose, throat. and lungs. Anti-gas ointments Nos. 2 and 3 are effective. 35. Treatment for ethyldichlorarsine casualties. For lesions of the eyes and skin the treatment is the same as for lewisite. An anti-arsenical agent should be applied to the eyes or skin and blisters should be opened. Hydrogen peroxide or hyperol are useful alternatives for skin lesions. Pulmonary and nasal irritation should be dealt with as described in Sections 44 and 65. OTHER VESICANTS 36. Besides mustard gas, lewisite and ethyldichlorarsine, there are other colourless or yellowish-brown liquids, capable of employment in chemical warfare, which are generally similar to these gases in their action, but are less readily detected by smell or sensory irritation. Their smells are relatively feeble and different people apply widely different descriptions to them, such as “ fishy,’’ “like soft soap ’’ and “ fruity.’’ Smell or sensory irritation may be completely lacking in concentrations of vapour which would nevertheless be dangerous if exposure were prolonged. In liquid form, however, they give the usual blister gas reaction on the Service detector paint, and the vapour may be detected by means of special papers. The general toxicological properties of these substances are similar to those of mustard gas, including systemic effects. In brief, it may be said that their effects on the skin are somewhat less than those of mustard gas or lewisite, while the effects of their vapour on the eyes are rather greater than those of mustard gas vapour. In liquid form their effects on the eyes are rather less severe and less immediately painful than those of liquid lewisite. Compared with mustard gas, the damage to the eye may be deeper, and iridocyclitis of _ hemorrhagic type may be encountered. Ciliary spasm may be severe. The treatment necessitated by exposure to these gases should be along the lines recommended for mustard gas. The following points should be noted :— Liquid in the eye.—Immediate and copious irrigation is the best treatment so far discovered, but if delayed longer than two minutes will not prevent a-
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