Sarin
1. General Information
Sarin is a human-made chemical warfare agent that is classified as a nerve
agent. Sarin is a clear, colorless, and tasteless liquid that has no
odor in its pure form. Sarin, also known as GB, can evaporate into a
vapor (gas) and spread into the environment. Sarin is not found naturally
in the environment, but was developed in 1938 in Germany as a pesticide.
Nerve agents, the most toxic and rapidly acting of the known chemical
warfare agents, are similar to certain kinds of pesticides (insect killers)
called organophosphates in terms of how they work and what kind of harmful
effects they cause. However, nerve agents are much more potent than organophosphate
pesticides.
2. Basic Sarin References
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (www.cdc.gov/)
maintains a web page devoted exclusively to sarin (http://www.bt.cdc.gov/agent/sarin) which includes excellent technical
documents about the nerve agent. Links are provided below to these documents,
selected from the several dozen available, as useful for persons, including
health care professionals, looking for a rapid, basic orientation to sarin.
|
|
|
3. More Information About Sarin
4. Sarin Reporting
Physicians and health care facilities should report suspected cases of exposure
to sarin to their local
county health department.