Incapacitating agent

Incapacitating Agents are primarily a hazard via the inhalation pathway. However, ingestion, abraded skin (e.g., breaks in the skin or penetration of skin by debris), or dermal exposure may also produce effects. 

Effects from exposure may appear in seconds or may be delayed up to several hours depending on the specific agent. Effects from dermal exposure may be delayed up to several days. 

Emergency Action for Chemical and Biological Warfare Agents 

Agents may be solids, liquids, or gases. Many solid agents are actually salts of oily organic compounds. Agents may or may not have an odor. 

Agents may be nonpersistent or persistent depending on the specific agent and environmental conditions. 

Opioid-incapacitating agents may cause prolonged respiratory depression, but recovery is usually without sequelae after a period of artificial ventilation and the administration of repeated doses of naloxone. 

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Incapacitants. Incapacitating agents, or incapacitants, are just what the name implies. In wartime, soldiers and civiUans must be physiologically, physically, and mentally able to perform their jobs. Thus, an agent rendering an individual incapable of job performance may be classified as an incapacitating agent (6,7). 

Incapacitants are most suitable for consideration in limited warfare situations, eg, when enemy troops are intermingled with a friendly population, or in a city that is a key military objective. The purpose is to capture the enemy without killing the civiUans. Incapacitating agents should produce no permanent after-effects and allow for complete recovery. 

Field protection The principles applied to the nerve agents apply equally as well to the incapacitating agents. It is possible that such agents will be disseminated by smoke-producing munitions or aerosols, using the respiratory tract as a route of entry. The use of protective mask, therefore, is essential. The skin is usually a much less effective route. 

Incapacitating agents have been stockpiled by numerous countries and there have been unverified reports that they have been utilized on the battlefield. In addition, they have been employed by police and special forces as a way to end hostage situations (e.g., the September 2002 counter terrorism raid on the Moscow theater). These operations have met with mixed success. 

Depending on the properties of the specific agent, unmodified incapacitating agents are classified as either nonpersistent or persistent by the military. 

Vapors of volatile incapacitating agents have a density greater than air and tend to collect in low places. Most incapacitating agents are nonvolatile and produce negligible amounts of vapor. 

Some incapacitating agents decompose slowly in water. Raising the pH of an aqueous solution of these agents significantly increases the rate of decomposition. 

Currently, there is no information on performance testing of chemical protective clothing against incapacitating agent. 

Varies according to the type of incapacitating agent. Care must be taken in that many signs and symptoms associated with exposure to incapacitating agents are also associated with anxiety or physical trauma. Potential indications of exposure include apprehension,... 

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