Also called: Also called: CO poisoning
Carbon monoxide (CO) is a gas that has no odor or color. But it is very dangerous. It can cause sudden illness and death. CO is found in combustion fumes, such as those made by cars and trucks, lanterns, stoves, gas ranges and heating systems. CO from these fumes can build up in places that don't have a good flow of fresh air. You can be poisoned by breathing them in. The most common symptoms of CO poisoning are
- Headache
- Dizziness
- Weakness
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Chest pain
- Confusion
It is often hard to tell if someone has CO poisoning, because the symptoms may be like those of other illnesses. People who are sleeping or intoxicated can die from CO poisoning before they have symptoms. A CO detector can warn you if you have high levels of CO in your home.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
-
"Invisible" Killer(Consumer Product Safety Commission) - Links to PDF - http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/pubs/464.pdf
Also available in Spanish http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/spanish/464s.pdf
-
Carbon Monoxide Poisoning(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.cdc.gov/co/faqs.htm
Also available in Spanish http://www.cdc.gov/co/es/faqs.htm
- Carbon Monoxide (CO)(Environmental Protection Agency, Indoor Environments Division) - http://www.epa.gov/iaq/co.html
- Carbon Monoxide Poisoning(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) - http://www.mayoclinic.com/print/carbon-monoxide/DS00648/DSECTION=all&METHOD=print
- Carbon Monoxide (and Recreational Boats)(U.S. Coast Guard, Office of Boating Safety) - http://www.uscgboating.org/command/co.htm
- Carbon Monoxide Hazards from Small Gasoline Powered Engines(National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health) - http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/co/
- CPSC Warns of Carbon Monoxide Poisoning with Camping Equipment(Consumer Product Safety Commission) - http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/pubs/5008.html
-
Portable Generator Hazards(Consumer Product Safety Commission) - http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/pubs/portgen.html
Also available in Spanish http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/spanish/5123s.pdf
- Preventing Carbon Monoxide Poisoning After an Emergency(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.bt.cdc.gov/disasters/cofacts.asp
-
Protect Your Family and Yourself from Carbon Monoxide Poisoning(Environmental Protection Agency) - http://www.epa.gov/iaq/pubs/coftsht.html
Also available in Spanish http://www.epa.gov/iaq/pubs/coftspan.html
-
Tox Town
(National Library of Medicine) - Requires Flash Player - http://toxtown.nlm.nih.gov/
Also available in Spanish http://toxtown.nlm.nih.gov/espanol/
- CO - How Carbon Monoxide Affects the Way We Live and Breathe(Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Air and Radiation) - http://www.epa.gov/air/urbanair/co/index.html
- What You Should Know about Combustion Appliances and Indoor Air Pollution(Consumer Product Safety Commission) - http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/pubs/452.html
-
ClinicalTrials.gov: Carbon Monoxide Poisoning(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/condition=%22Carbon+Monoxide+Poisoning%22
References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
- Article: Myocardial fibrosis from severe carbon monoxide poisoning detected by cardiac... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18695205&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: Surviving a mine explosion. - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18656058&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: Carboxyhemoglobin levels in carbon monoxide poisoning: do they correlate with... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18606318&tool=MedlinePlus
- Carbon Monoxide Poisoning -- see more articles - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=search&db=pubmed&term=carbon+monoxide+poisoning[majr]+AND+english[la]+AND+humans[mh]+NOT+(letter[pt]+OR+editorial[pt])&doptcmdl=summary&cmd_current=Limits&pmfilter_EDatLimit=last+1+Year&tool=MedlinePlus
- Environmental Protection Agency - http://www.epa.gov/
-
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health - http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/
Also available in Spanish http://www.cdc.gov/spanish/niosh/
- Unintentional Non-Fire-Related Carbon Monoxide Exposures -- United States, 2001-2003(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.cdc.gov/od/oc/media/pressrel/fs050120.htm
- Poisoning, Toxicology, Environmental Health - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/poisoningtoxicologyenvironmentalhealth.html
Carbon Monoxide Poisoning - Multiple Languages - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/languages/carbonmonoxidepoisoning.html