Casualties in WWI

Phosgene was used tactically as a delayed or immediate action casualty gas. It was first employed by the Germans in WWI (Dec, 1915) in cylinders under the name D-Stoff. The French iater (1916) employed phosgene as an artillery shell filler (Collingite). During the remainder of the war it was the Allies principal war gas, used also in trench mortars, bombs, and projector drums (Ref 2)... 

Gas Shells. No casualty-producing gas shells were used until near the end of WWI (June 1915) when the Germans brought out their K shell. The allies began firing such shells in Jan 1916. From then on die percentage of gas shells used on both sides steadily increased. By far the greatest number of all gas shells used in WWI was fired on the Western Front, next came the Eastern Front, and the Austro-Italian Fronts followed... 

Extremely heavy exposure to SM can cause central nervous system (CNS) excitation, leading to convulsions in animals (Anslow and Houk, 1946). Balali-Mood and Navaeian (1986) reported convulsions in six Iranian veterans who were hospitalized during the early stages of their intoxication (Balali-Mood and Navaeian, 1986). Most casualties from WWI and from the Iran-Iraq conflict, however, revealed mild and very nonspecific neurological effects, such as headache, anxiety, restlessness, confusion, and lethargy (Canelli, 1918 Balali-Mood and Navaeian, 1986). A frequent long-term complication in patients exposed to SM is delayed neuropathic toxicity, which was imderrepresented in most previous studies (Thomsen et al., 1988). 

Casualties from WWI and from the Iran-Iraq conflict were noted to be long-term mood and anxiety disorders, as well as posttraumatic stress disorder (Balali-Mood, 1986 Tabatabaee, 1988 Hashemian et al., 2006). Debility, loss of vitality, impaired concentration, sensory hypersensitivity, diminished libido, weakened potency, neuralgic symptoms, and disorders in autonomic regulation are common manifestations. Neuropsychiatric evaluation of 1,428 Iranian veterans 3-9 years after exposure to SM revealed anxiety (15%), depression (46%), personality disorders (31%), convulsions (6%), and psychosis (3%) (Tabarestani et al., 1988). Disorders of... 

The effects of SM on human eyes were extensively described in casualties from WWI. Although the original reports of these casualties have not been located, they are described in the seientific literature of the time. Warthin ... 

The British reported many thousands of eye casualties during WWI and SM was responsible for 77% of these. Analysis of the total figures reveals that 75% of cases were relatively mild, amounting to conjunctival irritation requiring an average stay in hospital of 2 weeks. Another 15% were described as moderate, with incapacitation for 4-6 weeks. Finally, 10% were described as severe requiring periods of up to 6 months in hospital for symptoms to stabilise. A total of 51 British soldiers were reported as blinded and there were 180 vision related pensions. ... 

By the end of the WWI, some 124,200 tons of chemical warfare agents (chlorine, phosgene, mustard, etc.) had been released, causing at least 1.3 million casualties of which more than 90,000 were fatal. The threat of the use of CWAs led to the development of protective means not only for humans, but also for horses and dogs. The effectivity of CWs in comparison with classic munition was evident 1 ton of classic explosives caused 4.9 casualties 1 ton of chemical munition caused 11.5 casualties and 1 ton of yperite caused 36.4 casualties (Bajgar, 2006). 

Although incapacitating airway injury occurs at vapor exposures significantly lower than those that cause severe skin blistering, inhaled sulfur mustard injures respiratory epithelium from the nasopharynx to the bronchioles. Since WWI, the majority of deaths occurring in sulfur mustard casualties have resulted from respiratory complications (Vedder, 1925 Warthin et al., 1918 Willems, 1989). Mild cases are treated to allow maximum comfort, whereas severe cases must attain ade-... 

This is untrue. During WWI, the mortality in mustard gas casualties was of the order of 2% over 8% of gunshot wounds resulted in death. High concentrations of lethal agents, such as nerve agents, would likely produce inevitable death, but again this is a criticism of mode of use rather than the weapon. 

Adducts with N-terminal valine, histidine and as-partic/glutamic acid residues have been detected in samples from human casualties. N -Terminal valine adducts were detected in blood from Iranian casualties collected up to 26 days after exposure (Benschop et al, 1997 Black et al., 1997a), and in blood collected 2-3 days after exposure from the two subjects (see above) accidentally exposed from a WWI munition (Black et al., 1997a). In the case of a sample collected 26 days after exposure, adduct concentration corresponded with that found in human blood after incubation with 0.9 qM sulphur mustard. The... 

Carbonyl chloride, CG, Collongite, D-stoff. Used by Germany as a mixture with chlorine at Nieltje in Flanders on December 19th 1915. 88 tons released 1069 casualties, 129 fatal. 80% of WWI gas fatalities due to phosgene. Colourless gas, bp 8°C with odour variably described as new-mown hay or mouldy hay. Tobacco... 

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