Abstract
This study was conducted to determine the annual number of emergency department (ED)
visits and rate of hyperbaric oxygen (HBO2) treatment for carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning in Washington, Idaho, and Montana.
All hospital emergency departments and hyperbaric treatment facilities in the region
were surveyed by mail and telephone regarding their patient treatment experience for
calendar year 1994. Results demonstrated that there were approximately 2.51 million
total ED visits in 1994 in the three states studied. Among these, an estimated 1,325
individuals were seen with carbon monoxide poisoning (52.9 CO cases per 100,000 ED
visits; 18.1 CO cases per 100,000 population). A total of 91 patients were treated
with HBO2, yielding an HBO2 treatment rate of 6.9% of those evaluated in EDs. Extrapolating these figures to
the US population suggests that the number of individuals seeking emergency medical
care for CO poisoning is much greater than is commonly quoted. Even after correcting
for the known increased rate of CO poisoning in the Pacific Northwest, the incidence
of nonfatal poisoning appears to be significantly higher than may be appreciated from
previous reports.
Keywords
To read this article in full you will need to make a payment
Purchase one-time access:
Academic & Personal: 24 hour online accessCorporate R&D Professionals: 24 hour online accessOne-time access price info
- For academic or personal research use, select 'Academic and Personal'
- For corporate R&D use, select 'Corporate R&D Professionals'
Subscribe:
Subscribe to Journal of Emergency MedicineAlready a print subscriber? Claim online access
Already an online subscriber? Sign in
Register: Create an account
Institutional Access: Sign in to ScienceDirect
References
- Unintentional carbon monoxide-related deaths in the United States, 1979 through 1988.JAMA. 1991; 266: 659-663
- Deaths from motor-vehicle-related unintentional carbon monoxide poisoning-Colorado, 1996, New Mexico, 1980–1995, and United States, 1979–1992.MMWR. 1996; 45: 1029-1032
National Injury Information Clearinghouse, Consumer Product Safety Commission.
- Carbon monoxide contamination of the living environment.J Environ Health. 1974; 36: 569-573
Population Division, Bureau of the Census, US Department of Commerce. Estimates of the population of states: July 1, 1990 to July 1, 1994.
- Carbon monoxide intoxication–A preventable environmental health hazard.MMWR. 1982; 31: 529-531
- Carbon monoxide poisoning associated with a propane-powered floor burnisher–Vermont, 1992.MMWR. 1993; 42: 726-728
- Warehouse workers’ headache.Am J Med. 1995; 98: 145-155
- Carbon monoxide poisoning in children riding in the back of pickup trucks.JAMA. 1992; 267: 538-540
- Carbon monoxide poisoning from indoor burning of charcoal briquettes.JAMA. 1994; 271: 52-53
- Management of carbon monoxide poisoning.Chest. 1990; 97: 165-169
- Occult carbon monoxide poisoning.West J Med. 1987; 146: 52-56
- Mortality from carbon monoxide in Georgia 1961–1973.Med Assoc Georgia. 1978; 67: 98-100
- Carbon monoxide poisoning.Postgrad Med. 1992; 92: 86-96
- Carbon monoxide poisoning among recreational boaters.JAMA. 1995; 24: 1614-1616
- Emergency department screening for unsuspected carbon monoxide exposure.Ann Emerg Med. 1988; 7: 478-483
- Carboxyhemoglobin levels in children with nonspecific flu-like symptoms.J Pediatr. 1988; 113: 501-504
- Carbon monoxide poisoning.Clin Toxicol. 1985; 23: 309-313
- Subacute carbon monoxide poisoning.JAMA. 1981; 246: 1698-1700
- Selection criteria utilized for hyperbaric oxygen treatment of carbon monoxide poisoning.J Emerg Med. 1995; 13: 227-231
Article info
Publication history
Accepted:
November 25,
1997
Received in revised form:
November 7,
1997
Received:
August 1,
1997
Identification
Copyright
© 1998 Elsevier Science Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
