Carbon dioxide as a potential danger to medical rescue teams at work - A case study
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Updated: Mar 7, 2026

Expired CO2 Measurement in Intubated or Spontaneously Breathing Patients from the Emergency Department
Published on: January 29, 2011
Roland Podlewski1, Włodzimierz Płotek2, Małgorzata Grześkowiak3
1Poznan University of Medical Sciences / Uniwersytet Medyczny im. Karola Marcinkowskiego w Poznaniu, Poznań, Poland (Department of Teaching Anesthesiology and Intensive Therapy / Zakład Dydaktyki Anestezjologii i Intensywnej Terapii). rpodlew@ump.edu.pl.
Abstract:
Medical rescue teams might be exposed to the risk of accidental poisoning while performing rescue procedures. Exposure to the risk of lethal carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations is a rare situation. This case study describes rescuing a patient who suffered from sudden cardiac arrest due to accidental CO2 poisoning. The victim was finally evacuated and resuscitated, but the circumstances of the rescue operation point to the need to equip ambulances with carbon dioxide detectors and hermetic oxygen masks. Med Pr 2017;68(1):135-138.
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