This book contains a wealth of material on the mechanisms of action of the major chemical warfare agents, including the nerve agent cyclosarin. Historically, chemical warfare agents were generally considered to be threats of military personnel. Since the Japanese terrorist group Aum Shinrikyo incidents with sarin, and more recent terrorist incidents such as 9/11 in the USA, this view has had to be revised and the protection of civilians against these agents now has to be considered. Civilians differ from military personnel in that they are not necessarily young and fit. Nor, crucially, will they generally receive pretreatment such as pyridostigmine,. This means that a potential mass casualty situation has to be considered.

List of contributors --Preface -- 1. Opinions of chemical warfare / Robert Maynard -- 2. The physicochemical properties and general toxicology of chemical warfare agents / Robert Maynard -- 3. Dispersion and modelling of the spread of chemical warfare agents / Roger Kingdon -- and Stephen Walker -- 4. The fate of chemical warfare agents in the environment / Sylvia Talmage, Nancy B. Munro, Annetta P. Watson, -- Joseph F. King -- and Veronique D. Hauschild -- 5. Biological markers of exposure to chemical warfare agents / Robin Black -- and Daan Noort -- 6. Respiratory protection / Anthony Wetherell -- and George Mathers -- 7. Responding to chemical terrorism : operational planning and decontamination / Gron Roberts -- and Robert Maynard -- 8. Toxicology of organophosphate nerve agents / Timothy Marrs -- 9. A history of human studies with nerve agents by the UK and the USA / Frederick Sidell -- 10. Nerve agents : low-dose effects / Leah Scott -- 11. Managing civilian casualties affected by nerve agents / J. Allister Vale, Paul Rice -- and Timothy C. Marrs -- 12. The management of casualties following toxic agent release : the approach adopted in France / David Baker -- 13. The dark mornings : the experiences and lessons learned from the Tokyo subway sarin attack experience / Tetsu Okumara, Tomohsia Nomura, Toshishige Suzuki, Manabu Sugita, Yasuyo Takeuchi, Toshio Naito, Sumie Okumura, Hiroshi Maekawa, Shinichi Ishimatsu, Nobukatsu, Kunihisa Miura -- and Louichiro Suzuki -- 14. Atropine and other anticholinergic drugs / John McDonough -- and Tsung-Ming Shih -- 15. Oximes / Peter Eyer -- and Franz Worek -- 16. The use of benzodiazepines in organophosphorus nerve agent intoxication / Timothy Marrs -- and Ake Sellstorm -- 17. Pretreatment for nerve agent poisoning / Leah Scott -- 18. Gulf War syndrome / Simon Wessely -- and Matthew Hotopf -- 19. Mustard gas / Robert Maynard -- 20. Dermal aspects of chemical warfare / Robert Chilcott -- 21. Sulfur mustard injuries of the skin : pathophysiology and the clinical management of chemical burns / Paul Rice -- 22. The normal bone marrow and management of toxin-induced stem cell failure / Jennifer Treleaven -- 23. Organic arsenicals / Timothy Marrs -- and Robert Maynard -- 24. Phosgene / Robert Maynard -- 25. Cyanides : chemical warfare agents and potential terrorist threats / Bryan Ballantine, Chantal Bismuth -- and Alan H. Hall -- 26. Riot control agents in military operations, civil disturbance control and potential terrorist activities, with particular reference to peripheral chemosensory irritants / Bryan Ballantyne -- 27. Ricin and abrin poisoning / Sally Bradberry, J. Michael Lord, Paul Rice -- and J. Allister Vale -- 28. The total prohibition of chemical weapons / Graham Pearson -- 29. An A-Z of compounds of interest in relation to chemical warfare and other malevolent uses of poisons / Philippa Edwards and Robert Maynard -- Index.