Acute ammonia poisoning: toxicity mechanisms, clinical manifestations, treatment and rehabilitation strategy

Abstract

RESUME. Almost the entire territory of Ukraine is bombarded by missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles, cities and industrial enterprises are destroyed. This increased the potential wide release risk of toxic gases, including ammonia, and the occurrence of mass poisonings. In such a difficult time and situation, it is necessary to summarize modern literary data and the results of the research on the mechanisms of the toxic ammonia action, clinical manifestations of acute poisoning, and treatment strategies. Purpose. To summarize and conduct a scientific analysis of modern literary data and the research on ammonia toxicity, diagnosis of clinical manifestations and treatment strategy. Materials and Methods. Information data from the Ministry of Health of Ukraine, the State Emergency Service of Ukraine, the American Health Service – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the American Association of Poison Control Centers (AAPCC), materials from scientific libraries PubMed, Medline, Elsevier and data from the research. Content analysis, system and comparative analyzes were used. Results and Conclusions. A scientific analysis of modern publications and the research on the toxicity of gaseous and liquid ammonia, mechanisms of its toxic action, diagnosis principles of bronchopulmonary system lesions, skin, eyes, nervous system and treatment strategy are presented. Key Words: gaseous ammonia, mechanisms of toxic action, acute poisoning, diagnosis, treatment.