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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 can not be treated at home. Immediate medical attention is always required.

• If there is a fire, make sure that you or others are not in danger from smoke or fumes.

• Then call 911 or have someone else call 911. Speak calmly and clearly state your address, name, and what has happened. As with all first aid treatment, be sure that no one is in danger.

• Check the area for fires, potentially poisonous fumes, smoke, and spilled chemicals. The victim's clothes and body can also be sources of danger if the cyanide is still on the victim.

• If you or others near the victim feel that CPR is necessary, begin the assessment, but do not perform mouth-to-mouth resuscitation on the victim without barrier protection because the person providing CPR can absorb cyanide in this manner. CPR can be performed without mouth-to-mouth contact if a protection barrier is not available. If you do not know CPR, lay the person on the floor, preferably on his or her left side.

• Look around for pill bottles, chemical bottles, or open fires, because these could be responsible for the poisoning and knowledge of these will help the medical team treat the victim.

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