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This question became relevant to doctors in Amesbury, England on Saturday when a couple came into contact with a neurotoxic agent of the Soviet era. And it was relevant earlier this year when the same agent – Novichok – almost killed a former Russian double agent and his daughter.
The militarized neurotoxic agents commonly referred to as Novichok, VX and sarin "for the most part possess the same chemical backbone as other organophosphorus pesticides," said Mr. Chai. "But they have been modified to make them powerful. "
In a word, mortal.
The cure itself is also far from pleasant.
"A feeling of fear"
Andrei Zheleznyakov, a Russian military researcher, is the first person known to be exposed to one of Novichok's neurological agents. In 1987, while he was working on a secret initiative of Soviet chemical weapons, he was exposed to the chemical compound when his hood malfunctioned.
"Circles appeared before my eyes: red and orange, a buzzing in my ears, I caught my breath and a feeling of fear: as if something was going to happen, I sat on a Chair and I told the guys "Zheleznyakov survived the exhibition but developed difficulties and withdrew, according to his colleague Vil Mirzayanov, who described the incident and the program Soviet chemical weapons in his memoirs, said Zheleznyakov. "State Secrets: Chronicle of an insider of the Russian program of chemical weapons."
When treating a patient who has been exposed to Novichok, there are three major steps. "First, you have to recognize that this has happened to someone, you can not handle it if you do not think about it," he said. Recognition is the "cornerstone", he said, because "the most common symptoms in people are blurred vision, sweating and nausea and, if you think about it, are rather nonspecific. "
Symptom management
Chai explained that people intoxicated by Novichok and other nerve agents basically die from secretions – vomiting, diarrhea and urinary incontinence – and Atropine counteracts these effects.
"If you look at people poisoned by sarin gas in Syria for example, if you look at these videos , everyone foams at the mouth, "he said." So we immediately give atropine to prevent this. "
Atropine works in two ways, he said. With the drying up of secretions, it increases heart rate, which slows down after exposure to a nerve agent. "This essentially gives you time to give an antidote," said Chai.
Antidote
Give the antidote, a chemical compound containing nitrogen known as an oxime, is the third step.
Novichok and other nerve agents bind to a receptor site in the brain where they disrupt cholinesterase, a type of enzyme necessary for the proper functioning nervous system, explains Chai.
The antidote "bypasses" the organophosphorus neurotoxic agent and "essentially cleans the binding site so that you essentially release the sealed cholinesterase and allow it to function again."
Novichok is so deadly in part because it's "essentially designed to prevent the antidote from working," Chai said.
However, with any neurotoxic agent, the speed with which a patient develops symptoms depends in part on the method of exposure – that he has inhaled an aerosolized neurotoxic agent, by example, or consumed it in liquid form.
Kim had immediate symptoms, said Chai.
Decontamination
Patients should also be decontaminated to avoid further exposure, notes the medical manual: "The clothes should be removed and the skin washed with soap and water. the eyes are completely irrigated for at least 5 to 10 minutes. "
Many details in the case of the British couple have not been discovered, but the known facts suggest that the nerve agent with which they are entered is durable. 19659005] "These agents can persist in the environment for days or months," said Chai. Experts say "data-src-mini =" // cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/150904185138-kids-playing-sandbox-small-169.jpg "data-src-xsmall =" // cdn. cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/150904185138-kids-playing-sandbox-medium-plus-169.jpg "data-src-small =" http://cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/150904185138 -kids-playing-sandbox-wide-169.jpg "data-src-medium =" // cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/150904185138-kids-playing-sandbox-exlarge-169.jpg "data- src-large = "// cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/150904185138-kids-playing-sandbox-super-169.jpg" data-src-full16x9 = "// cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/ dam / assets / 150904185138-kids-playing-sandbox-full-169.jpg "data-src-mini1x1 =" // cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/150904185138-kids-playing-sandbox-small-11 .jpg "data-demand-load =" not-loaded "data-eq-pts =" mini: 0, xsmall: 221, small: 308, medium: 461, large: 781 "src =" data: image / gif; base64, R0lGODlhEAAJAJEAAAAAAP /////// wAAACH5BAEAAAIALAAAAAAQAAkAAAIKlI + py + 0Po5yUFQA7 "/>