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Nerve Agent Exposure > Diagnosis Author: Elliot Rodriguez, MD, FACEP; Christine M. Stork, PharmD, DABAT
Editorial changes - 2009-10-30
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Rationale:

  • The nerve agents act by inhibiting AChE, which leads to an accumulation of acetylcholine at muscarinic and nicotinic receptor sites.
  • The central nervous system, parasympathetic and sympathetic ganglia, as well as the neuromuscular junction are all affected.

Evidence:

  • Multiple case series and reference texts note that patients accidentally and purposely exposed to nerve agents have cholinergic toxicity (11; 12; 13; 14; 15).

Comments:

  • None.
FAQs
Christine M. Stork, PharmD, DABAT has no financial relationships with pharmaceutical companies, biomedical device manufacturers, or health-care related organizations. Elliot Rodriguez, MD, FACEP has no financial relationships with pharmaceutical companies, biomedical device manufacturers, or health-care related organizations. Jerrold B. Leikin, MD, editorial consultant, received royalties from McGraw-Hill, Taylor and Francis; editor of Toxicoterrorism (McGraw-Hill).
Steven E. Weinberger, MD, FACP, Acting Editor, PIER, has stock holdings in Glaxosmithkline and Abbott.

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