Tag: carbon monoxide

Posted on

Carbon monoxide in your home is a silent killer.

Olympic Flame from the 1988 Winter Games at the University of Calgary. (Dr. Noorali Bharwani)
Olympic Flame from the 1988 Winter Games at the University of Calgary. (Dr. Noorali Bharwani)

A 12-year-old boy has died after high levels of carbon monoxide were detected at an Airdrie, Alberta apartment complex earlier this month.

Sometime ago provincial politicians in Ontario passed a bill named after a family of four who died in 2008 from carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning in their Woodstock, Ontario home.

These are just two examples.

According to Statistics Canada, there were 380 accidental deaths caused by CO in Canada between 2000 and 2009. Approximately 600 accidental deaths due to CO poisoning are reported annually in the United States. Intentional carbon monoxide-related deaths is five to 10 times higher.

CO has no smell, no taste and no colour, but its effects can be deadly if it goes undetected through your house.

CO is produced when fuels such as natural gas, gasoline, oil, propane, wood or coal are burned. The situation gets worse when that combustion is not properly ventilated, or when the CO can not get out of the house because of a blocked or dirty chimney.

It is dangerous to use appliances indoor that are meant to be used outdoors. CO can build up to dangerous levels when fuel-burning generators, space heaters, barbecues, grills or other appliances are used indoors in the garage.

CO is invisible. There are no obvious signs it may be building up around you. When you inhale CO it gets into your body and competes with oxygen. Oxygen is very essential for our survival. The brain is extremely vulnerable to oxygen deprivation. Without oxygen, body tissue and cells cannot function. CO deprives you of oxygen and literally suffocates you.

It is essential to have CO detectors in your vicinity. The most important place to install a CO alarm is in hallways, outside of sleeping areas.

At low levels of CO exposure, Health Canada says, you might have a headache, feel tired or short of breath, or find your motor functions impaired.

At higher levels of exposure, or at lower levels for a long time, symptoms might include chest pain, feeling tired or dizzy, and having trouble thinking.

Convulsions, coma and death are possible with high levels of exposure.

If the levels are very high, death can occur within minutes.

Prevention is better than cure. Fire and public safety officials recommend having CO detectors in the house, ideally located outside every sleeping area. Make sure your appliances are well maintained.

Fuel-burning appliances such as furnaces, water heaters, fireplaces and wood stoves should also have regular maintenance, and ventilation should be checked, ensuring it is not blocked by snow or leaves.

Treatment of CO exposure consists of removing the person from the site, administrating 100 per cent oxygen and transporting to the nearest hospital for further management.

Finally, make sure your house has CO detectors and smoke alarms. Smoke alarms alert you to fires. Install a CO alarm certified by a certification body that is accredited by the Standards Council of Canada.

Test your CO alarms regularly. Replace batteries and the alarm itself as recommended by the manufacturer.

Contact your municipal or provincial government office for more information on the use and installation of carbon monoxide alarms. Your local fire department may also be able to assist you.

Start reading the preview of my book A Doctor's Journey for free on Amazon. Available on Kindle for $2.99!

Posted on

Carbon Monoxide Poisoning

Recently, a man died from carbon monoxide poisoning in Medicine Hat. The Medicine Hat News has publicized this tragedy with a fair amount of educational material. How many of us have taken the trouble of securing our homes to prevent such a tragedy?

Do you know how and why so many people get killed by this deadly gas?

Do you know why the Manitoba taxpayers lost $70million between 1989 and 1998?

Find out more about these issues from the medical journals summarized in the following paragraphs.

Carbon Monoxide poisoning:

Approximately 600 accidental deaths due to carbon monoxide poisoning are reported annually in the United States. Intentional carbon monoxide-related deaths is 5 to 10 times higher, says a Review Article on this subject in the New England Journal of Medicine.

A severe winter is associated with increased number of carbon monoxide injuries. This is due to the poorly ventilated gasoline-powered generators used in winter months. The intentional deaths occur through out the year.

What is the level of normal carbon monoxide in the atmosphere? Less than 0.001 percent. We all have low levels of carbon monoxide in our blood. Levels amongst non-smokers are 1 to 3 percent. Compare this to a smoker – the level could be 10 to more than 15 percent higher.

What are the other sources of carbon monoxide besides smoke? Motor vehicle exhaust fumes, poorly functioning heating systems, propane operated forklifts, cleaner fuels like propane and methane.

According to the authors of this paper, the majority of the deaths in US were from motor vehicle exhaust fumes – 57 percent. Of these, 43 percent were due to faulty exhaust systems, 39 percent to operation in an improperly ventilated structure, and 18 percent to the use of a fuel-burning heating device in the passenger compartment.

Why is the gas so deadly? It is a colorless, odorless gas that is easily absorbed through the lungs. It has 200 to 250 times greater affinity to hemoglobin than oxygen. Thus depriving our body of oxygen. Resulting in destruction of vital organs and tissues.

In a confined space like a garage, the blood level can rise to dangerous levels within 10 minutes. Clinical features are vague and often mimic a non-specific viral illness. Hence delay in diagnosis.

Treatment consists of removing the person from the site, administrating 100 percent oxygen and transporting to the nearest hospital for further management by the experts.

Tragedies from carbon monoxide poisoning can be reduced or eliminated by preventive measures. Fuel-burning heating systems require regular professional maintainance, say the authors. Motor vehicles with engine running should not be in a confined space. Outdoor gas grills should not be operated indoors. Carbon monoxide detectors should be installed but they are not a substitute for proper maintainance of appliances, say the authors.

Why Manitoba taxpayers are losing millions of dollars?

Manitoba doctors earn 15 percent less than doctors in Ontario, Saskatchewan and Alberta, reports The Medical Post (Nov 24/98).

Between 1989 and 1998 about 400 medical graduates left the province at a cost of $150,000 per family physician and $200,000 per specialist. That is a loss to the taxpayers of $70 million. That does not include the cost of replacing 1800 practicing physicians who left Manitoba for greener pastures.

What is the solution? The executive director of the Manitoba Medical Association says,”The main problem in Manitoba is compensation. If you fix that problem, you stop losing doctors to other areas of Canada and U.S.”

Start reading the preview of my book A Doctor's Journey for free on Amazon. Available on Kindle for $2.99!