Use of pulse co-oximetry as a screening and monitoring tool in mass carbon monoxide poisoning.
Carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning remains a common cause of poisoning in the United States. We describe a case where responding fire department personnel encountered a sick employee with a headache at an automotive brake manufacturing plant. Using both atmospheric CO monitoring and pulse CO-oximetry technology, fire department personnel were able to diagnose the cause of the patient's illness and later identify the source of CO in the plant.
Bledsoe
Bryan E
BE
Department of Emergency Medicine, University of Nevada School of Medicine, Las Vegas, Nevada 89106, USA. bbledsoe@earthlink.net
Nowicki
Kevin
K
Creel
James H
JH
Carrison
Dale
D
Severance
Harry W
HW
D002249:Carbon Monoxide Poisoning / Q000175:diagnosis*; D004632:Emergency Medical Services; D006801:Humans; D054527:Mass Casualty Incidents; D008991:Monitoring, Physiologic / Q000379:methods*; D016273:Occupational Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects; D010092:Oximetry / Q000295:instrumentation*; D013714:Tennessee