MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia: Bug sprays

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Bug sprays

Contents of this page:
Definition Poisonous Ingredient Where Found Symptoms Home Treatment	Before Calling Emergency Poison Control, or a local emergency number What to expect at the emergency room Expectations (prognosis)

Definition

Poisoning from inhalation or ingestion of a bug spray.

Poisonous Ingredient

Pyrethrins, which are considered non-toxic, but they can displace oxygen in the lungs and therefore impair normal breathing.

Where Found

Various bug sprays

Symptoms

Difficulty breathing
Asphyxiation
Passing out
Vomiting

Home Treatment

Seek emergency medical care immediately. Remove the patient to fresh air. For ingestion, dilute with milk or water unless the patient is unconscious or experiencing convulsions. Contact Poison Control for further guidance.

Before Calling Emergency

Determine the following information:

The patient's age, weight, and condition
The name of the product (ingredients and strengths, if known)
The time it was swallowed or inhaled
The amount swallowed or inhaled

Poison Control, or a local emergency number

See Poison Control centers for telephone numbers and addresses. Take the container with you to the emergency room.

What to expect at the emergency room

Some or all of the following procedures may be performed:

For swallowed poison
- Placement of a tube down the nose and into the stomach (a nasogastric tube, or an NG tube) to wash out the stomach
- Activated charcoal administration
- Endoscopy -- the placement of a camera down the throat to see the extent of burns to the esophagus and the stomach
- Give IV fluids
- Admission to the hospital
- Give an antidote
- Treat the symptoms
For inhaled poisons
- A breathing tube may need to be inserted
- Oxygen
- Admission to the hospital or to the intensive care unit
- Bronchoscopy (inserting a camera down the throat into the airway to evaluate the extent of burns to the airway and lungs)
For skin exposure
- Irrigation (washing of the skin), perhaps every few hours for several days
- Skin debridement (surgical removal of burned skin)
- Admission or transfer to a hospital that specializes in burn care

Expectations (prognosis)

Severe asphyxiation can be rapidly life-threatening. For simple exposure or inhalation of small amounts, recovery should occur.

Update Date: 4/16/2004

Updated by: Cherlin Johnson, M.D., Department of Emergency Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

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