Enlisting hospitals in fight against carbon monoxide

New York Times, February 26, 2008

Additional cases of carbon monoxide poisoning might be caught if doctors began routinely testing emergency room patients for carbon monoxide exposure, a study suggests. Because the symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning resemble those of other illnesses, hospitals may provide improper treatment and return the patient to the environment where the exposure occurred, said researchers from Brown University. A simple test, using a device clamped on one finger, could measure oxygen and carbon monoxide levels in the blood quickly and inexpensively, according to the researchers.