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EMT Basic · Chapter 22 · Review · Chapter track

Toxicology

Referencing the content of EMT-Basic training and emergency patient care

Learning objectives (14)

  1. Define toxicology, poison, toxin, and overdose — Knowledge/skills objective (printed page 821); confirm wording in your course copy.

  2. Demonstrate how to administer activated charcoal — Knowledge/skills objective (printed page 822); confirm wording in your course copy.

  3. Demonstrate how to assess and treat a patient with a suspected overdose — Knowledge/skills objective (printed page 822); confirm wording in your course copy.

  4. Demonstrate how to assess and treat a patient with a suspected poisoning — Knowledge/skills objective (printed page 822); confirm wording in your course copy.

  5. Describe how poisons and toxins can enter the body — Knowledge/skills objective (printed page 821); confirm wording in your course copy.

  6. Describe the assessment and treatment of a patient with a suspected overdose — Knowledge/skills objective (printed page 821); confirm wording in your course copy.

  7. Describe the assessment and treatment of a patient with a suspected poisoning or toxic exposure — Knowledge/skills objective (printed page 821); confirm wording in your course copy.

  8. Describe the assessment and treatment of a patient with suspected food poisoning — Knowledge/skills objective (printed page 821); confirm wording in your course copy.

  9. Describe the assessment and treatment of a patient with suspected plant poisoning — Knowledge/skills objective (printed page 821); confirm wording in your course copy.

  10. Discuss how to manage a patient who has overdosed on an opioid or opiate and who has gone into cardiac or respiratory arrest — Knowledge/skills objective (printed page 821); confirm wording in your course copy.

  11. Discuss scene safety considerations for working at a scene with a potentially hazardous material or violent patient — Knowledge/skills objective (printed page 821); confirm wording in your course copy.

  12. Explain the use of activated charcoal, including indications, contraindications, and the need to obtain approval from medical control before administration — Knowledge/skills objective (printed page 821); confirm wording in your course copy.

  13. Identify the common signs and symptoms of poisoning or toxic exposure — Knowledge/skills objective (printed page 821); confirm wording in your course copy.

  14. Understand the role of airway management in a patient suffering from poisoning or overdose — Knowledge/skills objective (printed page 821); confirm wording in your course copy.

Chapter web resources

Optional reading from authoritative sites. Your textbook remains the primary source for this course.

When sources disagree (5 topics to verify before you teach from this chapter alone)

Printable study sheetPrintable flashcards (PDF, 10-up)Read first, then practise the track.

Showing Chapter track material. Switch tracks on the chapter page.

Vocabulary · 13

  • Toxin (poison)

    Any substance that, in sufficient quantity, produces harmful effects on the body.

    SourceCDC — Poisoning prevention

  • Ingested poison

    A poison taken in by mouth — the most common route of exposure in the United States.

    SourceAmerican Association of Poison Control Centers — Routes of exposure

  • Inhaled poison

    A poison absorbed through the lungs — examples include carbon monoxide, smoke, and chlorine gas.

    SourceCDC — Carbon monoxide poisoning

  • Absorbed poison

    A poison that crosses the skin or mucous membranes — pesticides and some chemicals.

    SourceCDC — Pesticide poisoning

  • Injected poison

    A poison delivered through the skin barrier — including snake or insect envenomation and IV drug overdoses.

    SourceCDC — Venomous snake and insect injuries

  • Activated charcoal

    An oral adsorbent that binds many ingested toxins in the gut to limit systemic absorption; used selectively and within scope.

    SourceAmerican Academy of Clinical Toxicology / European Association of Poisons Centres position statement — Single-dose activated charcoal

  • Naloxone (Narcan)

    An opioid antagonist that reverses respiratory depression caused by opioids; commonly given 0.4–2 mg intranasal or intramuscular.

    SourceUS FDA — Naloxone product information

  • Opioid

    A class of drugs — natural and synthetic — that act on opioid receptors; includes heroin, morphine, oxycodone, and fentanyl.

    SourceCDC — Opioids — overview

  • Opioid toxidrome (triad)

    The classic triad of opioid overdose — pinpoint pupils, depressed respirations, and decreased mental status.

    SourceCDC — Recognizing opioid overdose

  • Sympathomimetic toxidrome

    A pattern of stimulant overdose — tachycardia, hypertension, hyperthermia, dilated pupils, agitation — from drugs like cocaine or methamphetamine.

    SourceAmerican Academy of Clinical Toxicology — Sympathomimetic toxidrome

  • Carbon monoxide poisoning

    A toxic exposure to colorless, odorless CO gas that binds hemoglobin and prevents oxygen delivery; presents with headache, confusion, and nausea.

    SourceCDC — Carbon monoxide poisoning

  • Poison Control Center

    A 24-hour resource available at 1-800-222-1222 in the U.S. that provides expert guidance on poisoning emergencies.

    SourceAmerican Association of Poison Control Centers — Poison Help line

  • Withdrawal syndrome

    A characteristic set of signs and symptoms that occur after sudden cessation or reduction of a substance to which the body has adapted.

    SourceSAMHSA — Substance withdrawal

Sequences · 2

  • Field response to a suspected opioid overdose — Order EMT actions for an unresponsive patient with the opioid triad.
  • Toxicologic history — what the EMT asks — Order the focused questions when poisoning is suspected.