How long exposed to carbon monoxide

When people lose consciousness due to carbon monoxide poisoning, they will typically have relapses for several weeks. They will suffer from headache, fatigue, loss of memory, difficulty in thinking clearly, irrational behavior, and irritability.

Recover can be slow and frustrating. Some individuals suffer permanent brain and organ damage. Victims may be highly sensitive to CO for the rest of their lives. Can I be tested for carbon monoxide? If you have recently been exposed, a breath test can determine carbon monoxide levels.

Medical laboratories can measure carboxyhemoglobin levels in the blood. Carboxyhemoglogin levels in the blood drop after the victim is removed from the carbon monoxide source. For this reason, carboxyhemoglobin tests should not be used as the only indicator of the danger of exposure or the possible adverse health effects. Neurological assessment tests, which ask the patient to perform a variety of physical and mental skills, can be used to determine the effects of CO exposure.

Because the effects of carbon monoxide may last for months, lack of elevated carboxyhemoglobin levels in the blood does not insure that carbon monoxide is not the cause of health problems. Consult hyperbaric chamber medical staff who are experienced in carbon monoxide poisoning diagnosis for interpretation of results. What should I do to protect myself from the dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning? First, purchase a carbon monoxide detector s.

Second, have all heating appliances checked every year by a qualified heating contractor. And third, replace heating units with direct-vent sealed combustion units. For more information request other notes in the Carbon Monoxide series. Early symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning include: Headache. As carbon monoxide builds up in your blood , symptoms get worse and may include: Confusion and drowsiness.

Fast breathing, fast heartbeat, or chest pain.. Vision problems. See a doctor if: You often are short of breath and have mild nausea and headaches when you are indoors. You feel better when you leave the building and worse when you return. Other people you work or live with have the same symptoms you do. How is carbon monoxide poisoning diagnosed? How is it treated? For this treatment, you breathe oxygen through a mask. This is the most common treatment. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy.

For this treatment, you lie inside a chamber that delivers oxygen under high pressure. This quickly reduces carbon monoxide levels in the blood. How can you prevent carbon monoxide poisoning?

Safe use of vehicles Do not leave your car running in the garage, even if the garage door is open. Do not ride in the back of a pickup truck with a camper shell. Do not swim near a boat or jet ski that is idling. Do not swim near or be pulled behind a boat or jet ski that is operating at a slow speed. Do not sit in a running car or truck if the tailpipe is blocked with snow or mud.

Safe use of fuel-burning tools and appliances Have all fuel-burning appliances such as oil or gas heaters, stoves, water heaters, and space heaters, fireplaces, and wood stoves inspected each year. Check chimneys, flues, and vents regularly to make sure they are in good shape, properly connected, and not blocked.

Never use a kerosene or propane heater in an enclosed area, such as a camper, motor home, trailer, or tent. Never use a gas or charcoal grill indoors. People may have irreversible brain damage or even die before anyone realizes there's a problem. The warning signs of carbon monoxide poisoning can be subtle. But the condition is a life-threatening medical emergency. Carbon monoxide poisoning is caused by inhaling combustion fumes. When too much carbon monoxide is in the air you're breathing, your body replaces the oxygen in your red blood cells with carbon monoxide.

This prevents oxygen from reaching your tissues and organs. Various fuel-burning appliances and engines produce carbon monoxide. The amount of carbon monoxide produced by these sources usually isn't cause for concern.

But if they're used in a closed or partially closed space — cooking with a charcoal grill indoors, for example — the carbon monoxide can build to dangerous levels. Use caution when working with solvents in a closed area. Methylene chloride, a solvent commonly found in paint and varnish removers, can break down metabolize into carbon monoxide when inhaled.

Exposure to methylene chloride can cause carbon monoxide poisoning. When working with solvents at home, use them only outdoors or in well-ventilated areas. It's very important to be aware of the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning and to look out for warning signs.

Investigate the possibility of a carbon monoxide leak if your pet suddenly becomes ill or dies unexpectedly and their death is not related to old age or an existing health condition. Page last reviewed: 10 April Next review due: 10 April Carbon monoxide poisoning. Symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning The symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning are not always obvious, particularly during low-level exposure.

Other symptoms include: dizziness feeling and being sick tiredness and confusion stomach pain shortness of breath and difficulty breathing The symptoms of exposure to low levels of carbon monoxide can be similar to those of food poisoning and flu.

But unlike flu, carbon monoxide poisoning does not cause a high temperature. Your symptoms may be less severe when you're away from the source of the carbon monoxide. This can happen within 2 hours if there's a lot of carbon monoxide in the air. Long-term exposure to low levels of carbon monoxide can also lead to neurological symptoms, such as: difficulty thinking or concentrating frequent emotional changes — for example, becoming easily irritated, depressed, or making impulsive or irrational decisions Breathing in high levels of carbon monoxide gas can cause more severe symptoms.

These may include: impaired mental state and personality changes intoxication the feeling that you or the environment around you is spinning vertigo loss of physical co-ordination caused by underlying damage to the brain and nervous system ataxia breathlessness and a heart rate of more than beats per minute tachycardia chest pain caused by angina or a heart attack an uncontrollable burst of electrical activity in the brain that causes muscle spasms seizures loss of consciousness — in cases where there are very high levels of carbon monoxide, death may occur within minutes What causes carbon monoxide to leak?

Carbon monoxide is produced when fuels such as gas, oil, coal and wood do not burn fully. Burning charcoal, running cars and the smoke from cigarettes also produce carbon monoxide gas.

Gas, oil, coal and wood are sources of fuel used in many household appliances, including: boilers gas fires central heating systems water heaters cookers open fires Incorrectly installed, poorly maintained or poorly ventilated household appliances, such as cookers, heaters and central heating boilers, are the most common causes of accidental exposure to carbon monoxide.

Other possible causes of carbon monoxide poisoning include: blocked flues and chimneys — this can stop carbon monoxide escaping, allowing it to reach dangerous levels burning fuel in an enclosed or unventilated space — for example, running a car engine, petrol-powered generator or barbecue inside a garage, or a faulty boiler in an enclosed kitchen faulty or blocked car exhausts — a leak or blockage in the exhaust pipe, such as after heavy snowfall, could lead to a build-up of carbon monoxide paint fumes — some cleaning fluids and paint removers contain methylene chloride dichloromethane ; this substance is broken down by the body into carbon monoxide smoking shisha pipes indoors — shisha pipes burn charcoal and tobacco, which can lead to a build-up of carbon monoxide in enclosed or unventilated rooms Treating carbon monoxide poisoning Seek medical advice from your GP if you think you have been exposed to low levels of carbon monoxide.

Your house will also need to be checked for safety before anyone returns. Standard oxygen therapy Standard oxygen therapy in hospital will be needed if you have been exposed to a high level of carbon monoxide, or you have symptoms that suggest exposure. Breathing in concentrated oxygen enables your body to quickly replace carboxyhaemoglobin.

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy Hyperbaric oxygen therapy HBOT floods the body with pure oxygen, helping it overcome the oxygen shortage caused by carbon monoxide poisoning. Standard oxygen therapy is usually the recommended treatment option.