Fish and other aquatic animal kills: causes and relevance to public health for military health care professionals.
Environmental contamination is a public health issue. Fish or other aquatic animal kills can be a sign that contamination of the aquatic environment has occurred. They are highly visible to the public. When such kills occur in water bodies on military installations, medical personnel are often involved in the investigation to assess the public health implications of the kill or its causes. This article discusses the causes of aquatic animal kills, describes a proper response to a kill, and gives several case studies.
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Armstrong Laboratory, Human Systems Center, Air Force Material Command, Brooks AFB, TX 78235-5000.
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D000818:Animals; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D005399:Fishes; D006801:Humans; D008887:Military Medicine; D011898:Ranidae; D014876:Water Pollution / Q000009:adverse effects*; D014877:Water Pollution, Chemical / Q000009:adverse effects