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Medical Author:

John P. Cunha, DO, FACOEP

John P. Cunha, DO, FACOEP

John P. Cunha, DO, is a U.S. board-certified Emergency Medicine Physician. Dr. Cunha's educational background includes a BS in Biology from Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, and a DO from the Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences in Kansas City, MO. He completed residency training in Emergency Medicine at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center in Newark, New Jersey.

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Medical Editor:

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, Chief Medical Editor

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, Chief Medical Editor

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, is a U.S. board-certified Anatomic Pathologist with subspecialty training in the fields of Experimental and Molecular Pathology. Dr. Stöppler's educational background includes a BA with Highest Distinction from the University of Virginia and an MD from the University of North Carolina. She completed residency training in Anatomic Pathology at Georgetown University followed by subspecialty fellowship training in molecular diagnostics and experimental pathology.

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Cyanide Poisoning Symptoms

Cyanide poisoning can be difficult to detect. The effects of cyanide ingestion are very similar to the effects of suffocation; because cyanide stops the cells of the body from being able to use oxygen, which all cells need to survive. The symptoms of cyanide poisoning are similar to those experienced when hiking or climbing at high altitudes.

• General weakness, confusion, bizarre behavior, excessive sleepiness, coma, shortness of breath, headache, dizziness, and seizures can all present with cyanide poisoning.
  
  
• Typically, an acute ingestion will have a dramatic, rapid onset, immediately affecting the heart and causing sudden collapse. It can also immediately affect the brain and cause a seizure or coma.
  
  
• Chronic poisoning (over a long period of time) from ingestion or environmental poisoning will have a more gradual onset.

• The skin of a cyanide-poisoned person can sometimes be unusually pink or cherry-red because oxygen will stay in the blood and not get into the cells. The person may also breathe very fast and have either a very fast or very slow heartbeat. Sometimes the person's breath can smell like bitter almonds, though this can be difficult to detect.

• Perhaps most important is the setting, rather than the signs or symptoms.

• A person who works in a laboratory or plastics factory, has a higher risk of cyanide poisoning.
  
  
• Home, RV, boat, or building fires, always include the additional concern of cyanide exposure.
  
  
• If you know someone has been depressed or has substance abuse problems and you find him or her with any of the signs or symptoms of cyanide poisoning, then a suicide attempt is possible.