Cardiopulmonary effects of phosphine poisoning: A preliminary evaluation of milrinone.

Exposure to phosphine (PH) presents with a host of diverse, non-specific symptoms that span multiple organ systems and is characterized by a high mortality rate. While a comprehensive mechanism for PH poisoning remains inconclusive, prior studies have implicated cardiac failure and circulatory compromise as potential pathways central to PH-induced mortality. In this study, milrinone (MLR), a phosphodiesterase-3 inhibitor used to treat cardiac failure, was investigated as a potential countermeasure for PH poisoning.

Assessment of naloxone as a therapeutic for inhaled carfentanil in the ferret.

Carfentanil is a powerful synthetic opioid that is approximately 100 times more potent than fentanyl and 10,000 times more potent than morphine. Carfentanil was originally intended to be used as a sedative for big game animals in a veterinary setting, but it is becoming increasingly recognized as a public health concern. We set out to investigate the effectiveness of naloxone against a potentially lethal dose of inhaled carfentanil in male ferrets.

Methylene blue and monosodium glutamate improve neurologic signs after fluoroacetate poisoning.

Fluoroacetate (FA) is a tasteless, odorless, water-soluble metabolic poison with severe toxicological effects. Characterized in the mid-1900s, it has been used as a rodenticide but is comparably lethal to all mammals. Many countries have restricted its use, and modern-day accidental human exposures are rare, but recently, concerns have been raised about its application as a chemical weapon with no known antidote.