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HISTORY: Edgar Jones, Ian Palmer, and Simon Wessely Enduring beliefs about effects of gassing in war: qualitative study BMJ 2007; 335: 1313-1315 [Abstract] [Full text]

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Knowledge of chemical warfare injuries

Jan Schumacher, Kate Prior, Surgeon Lieutenant Commander, Royal Navy   (29 December 2007)

Knowledge of chemical warfare injuries 29 December 2007
Jan Schumacher, Consultant Anaesthetist Guy´s and St Thomas´ NHS Foundation Trust, Lambeth Palace Rd, London SE1 7EH, Kate Prior, Surgeon Lieutenant Commander, Royal Navy Send response to journal: Re: Knowledge of chemical warfare injuries	We read the article of Jones, Palmer and Wessely [1] with great interest. Since the very first medical reports from “The German use of asphyxiating gases” in 1915 [2], poisonous gases had a great psychological effect on soldiers, the medical community and the public´s morale. Ten years later, in 1925, JBS Haldane´s explanation of this effect was that poisonous gases were just simply “...new, and incomprehensible” [3]. But even 82 years later, the general repugnance and devastating effects of chemical warfare felt by the public has continued to grow. This, and the lack of impartial and unexaggerated public knowledge, make chemical weapons ideal terrorizing agents. To overcome this awing perception, it is highly desirable to approach, evaluate and discuss the matter in an unbiased and scientific way. Therefore, one should greatly appreciate the work and effort the authors put into their study and the interesting results they present to a broad medical audience. References: 1.Jones E, Palmer I, Wessely S. Enduring beliefs about effects of gassing in war: qualitative study. BMJ 2007;335: 1313-5 2.Editorial. The German use of asphyxiating gases. BMJ 1915;1: 774-5. 3.Haldane JBS. Callinicus. A defence of chemical warfare. London: Kegan Paul & Co, LTD, 1925: p81 Competing interests: None declared