Despite less toxic than the neurotoxics, the vesicant agents show the same lethality. The sulfur mustard, the main vesicant, was largely used during World War I, and among the warfare agents, was responsible for the largest number of casualties in history. This fact has yielded to this vesicant the nickname of King of the warfare gases. Other feature of the vesicants is their capacity to leave profound sequelae in its victims as a result of the feared "chemical burns". In this work we present a small revision of on the historical aspects, the physical chemical properties, the toxicology and the available treatment against vesicants.
Chemicals are used since the dawn of human civilization for many different purposes. The growth of production processes, storage and transport of chemicals in the world led to an increase in the number of individuals and communities exposed to the inherent risks in such work activities. Workers are exposed to chemicals worldwide every day, and because of such situation, occupational hygienists are constantly working to develop ways to protect workers, both as in developed as in developing countries, covering equally small, medium and large companies. To reduce the exposure of workers to chemical agents, "toolboxes" are being currently proposed to manage the occupational hazard. One of them is known as Toolbox, which is based on qualitative assessment of risk management. The toolkits are bases on a concept known as "Control Banding"-range/tracks. International organizations such as ILO, OSHA, HSE has been promoting the international release of this tool, which is known as International Chemical Control Toolkit.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.