Wilderness: Poisons

• Poisons Overview
• Poison Symptoms
• Poisons Treatment
• When to Seek Medical Care
• Synonyms and Keywords
• Authors and Editors

Poisons Overview

Toxins (poisons) may be ingested or inhaled. In addition to overdoses of drugs, many plants are toxic to humans. Always try to bring the offending substance(s) with the victim for identification and analysis when seeking medical help.

Symptoms vary based on the type of toxin ingested. Many will cause nausea and vomiting, but most will be associated with other, more specific symptoms such as weakness, numbness, hot and cold reversal, and rash.

Poison Symptoms

• Symptoms of poisoning may include nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps, convulsions, seizures, shallow breathing, fast or slow heart rate, confusion, and coma, and can lead to death.
  
  
• See other sections in this guide for details on specific poisonings.

Poisons Treatment

• If the victim is alert and ingestion is recent, with the exception of fuel oils and caustic soaps, induce vomiting.
  
  
  • To cause someone to vomit, use syrup of ipecac, which is often in first aid kits.
    
    
  • Do not induce vomiting with an oily poison because the substance may enter the lungs where it will create even greater problems. Small amounts of oily poisonous substances are best left alone to pass through the body. Milk may dissolve some of the oil and reduce the damage to cells as it passes out of the body.
  
  
  
• Follow CPR guidelines if necessary.

When to Seek Medical Care

• Seek medical treatment as soon as possible.
  
  
• A victim of poisoning may need decontamination (with activated charcoal solutions taken by mouth), lab testing, observation, and, in certain cases, antidotes for various poisonings.

Synonyms and Keywords

wilderness: poisons, toxin, overdose

Authors and Editors

Author: Scott H Plantz, MD, FAAEM, Research Director, Assistant Professor, Department of Emergency Medicine, Mount Sinai School of Medicine.

Editors: Ivette Motola, MD, Staff Physician, Department of Emergency Medicine, Harvard Medical School; Francisco Talavera, PharmD, PhD, Senior Pharmacy Editor, eMedicine; James Kimo Takayesu, MD, Staff Physician, Department of Emergency Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital/Massachusetts General Hospital.




Last Editorial Review: 8/10/2005