Gee Jon was executed on February 28, 1924 in Nevada. Gee was a Chinese nationalist who killed a rival gang member. He was captured, tried and sentenced to death. Death by cyanide.
This was the first use of cyanide by the state of Nevada. In a "what were they thinking" attempt they first tried to dribble the cyanide gas into his prison cell. How humane, to kill a man while he unsuspectingly sleeps. Of course in order to save the guards and other prisoners they had to use very little gas. Plus the cell was open allowing the gas to escape. So that didn't work. The prison then took over the butcher shop, sealed it and successfully tried it on a cat. Gee was place in the cold room (the heater failed) and the gas was pumped in. After ten minutes he stopped moving. But then the witnesses thought they could smell bitter almonds. The telltale odor of cyanide. The area was quickly cleared. Eventually guards went into the new chamber. They removed Jon's body and cleaned up the room.
Gee Jon was the first person executed by cyanide in the US. The practice continued until 1999 when Arizona used its chamber one final time.
Today marks the anniversary of the death Fletcher Knebel in 1993. He was a best selling author from 1962, "Seven Days in May" to 1986, "Sabotage". Two interesting toxicology tidbits surround his death.
First, Fletcher commited suicide by taking an overdose of "sleeping pills". Rarely will a benzodiazepine alone cause death. When taken in sufficient quantity with another similar drug, like ethanol, then a bad outcome is possible. Mix your sleeping pill with ethanol and some pain killers then the likely of have a bad outcome increases. But sleeping pills alone, it just doesn't happen. In 1993 there were still some bad sleeping pills available. Drugs that stayed in the body for too long, like flurazepam. That lead to waking up with a hangover. Others just put you out a little too deeply, secobarbital. I suspect, in Fletcher Knebel's suicide, he took his secobarbital and mixed it with a benzodiazepine and maybe more.
Second interesting tidbit is that Fletcher was a member of the Hemlock Society. The Hemlock Society was a group that dedicated themselves to the "Right to Die" movement. They believed in legalized suicide. Fletcher was suffering from lung cancer and heart disease. He decided that his time had come, and acted on it. The Hemlock Society has since been laid to rest. Here is an interesting piece on the history of the Hemlock Society. While the Hemlock Society has morphed into a new organization, the fight for the right to die continues. Right to die conjures up many controversial thoughts and images. For my part I think of every physician, pharmacist and nurse that is asked to help a patient end their life. I pray that none of us will never be in that predicament.
On February 25 2000 then President Bill Clinton signed into law the "Poison Center Enhancement and Awareness Act". With the signing of that law the Nation's Poison Centers were united by a common phone number and marketing plan. Prior to 2000 Poison Centers worked on islands funded by states and host hospitals. Each had their own phone number, marketing ideas and education plans. There was uniform data collection and a accrediting body, but little else tied centers together. In 2000 that all changed. Now we have one single phone number (1-800-222-1222). One single "POISON HELP" logo. Vastly improved data collection. Plus uniform marketing and education campaigns. There is also a small amount of funding that supports 15% of operating costs. For the those interested here is the introduction of the bill on the House Floor just prior to its passage. While Poison Centers still struggle for appropriate funding we have come along way since the signing of the "Poison Center Enhancement and Awareness Act" of 2000. Thank you President Clinton.
This morning Robin Roberts was back on Good Morning America. She has been fighting cancer and is recovering from a bone marrow transplant. Her presence today is a testament to her spirit, the human body and modern science. Incredible.
What makes her story incredible is that modern science filled her veins with poison that was strong enough to kill all of her working bone marrow. Thanks to Paracelsus we know that the difference between a drug and a poison is the dose. All drugs in large doses are poisons. A few drugs in small doses are also poisons. But cancer drugs are the poison. In Robin Roberts the poison we gave her killed her bone marrow.
The link between some cancer drugs and poisons are clear. Mustard gas was used during WWI to incapacitate or kill enemy solders. It was discovered that human cells did not grow and divide and bone marrow did not work as well after an exposure to mustard gas. From that finding a terrible poison used in the battlefield became a drug to treat cancer. The difference between a horrible poison and a life saving drug is blurred even more.
Robins Roberts has shown tremendous courage and spirit. She is a testament to what the human body can endure and is a testament to modern medicine. Medicine used a poison to kill her bone marrow, then used a donor's marrow to help rebuild her body. The drugs she is taking now to prevent rejection, manage adverse effects and help her rebuild are much safer than her cancer drugs. We can now go back to Paracelsus and remember that the difference between a drug and a poison is the dose.
T
he orgin of Valentine's Day is a little cloudy. The most historically accurate story is that Valentine was a priest in the 3rd century during the rein of Claudius II. During that time he married young couples and helped those being persecuted for their faith. Both crimes under Claudius. After being arrested he cured the daughter of his jailer of her blindness. Just before his death he wrote a farewell note to the jailer's daughter signing it, "from your Valentine". St. Valentine died on this day, February 14, around 270.
St. Valentine married young couple against the will of the Roman Empire. From that beginning to today we now celebrate love and romance on his feast day with chocolate and roses.
Chocolate is an interesting gift. It tastes wonderful and makes you feel really good. A wonderful gift. But it has its dark side. Chocolate contains theobromine. Theobromine is a substance that is very similar to caffeine and has some of the same effects. The concentration of theobromine is highest in dark and baking chocolate. But you would have to eat extreme amounts of chocolate for the theobromine to make you sick. The sugar will get you first as witnessed by any parent with a child on Halloween. The love ones that are really at risk of chocolate poisoning are our dogs. Theobromine can be very toxic in dogs. It causes vomiting, diarrhea, hyperactivity, tremor and even seizures. As with anything else there is a toxic dose. So when your dog eats your bag of Dove chocolate hearts, call the Poison Center.
Roses are the other hand smell wonderful, are not harmful when ingested and some species are edible. Maybe we should stick with flowers. St. Valentine would be proud
Today snow is predicted. Big snow. Up to 18 inches in the northeast. We may get 6 inches here in Milwaukee. With snow comes many hazards. Driving becomes a challenge. For those in poor health shovelling may prove devastating. Bad weather also brings to the forefront two toxins. The first in gasoline. After a storm there is a spike in people who aspirate gasoline. Getting a hydrocarbon like that into your lungs is not healthy. As a result breathing, and oxygen exchange, can become difficult. So when you siphon gas our of the car to fill that snow blower or snowmobile, please be careful.
The second toxin is carbon monoxide. Almost anything that burns produces carbon monoxide. The article pasted below from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel was a stark reminder of what carbon monoxide can do. Here was a young couple just doing some ice fishing.
Carbon monoxide blamed in fishing death
Brothertown - Carbon monoxide poisoning caused the death of a Chilton woman in an ice shanty on Lake Winnebago, Calumet County authorities said Monday.
Sara Meyer, 30, was declared dead at the shanty Saturday. A 37-year-old man who was found unresponsive in the shelter was taken to a hospital in Appleton. His name and condition have not been released.
What does this have to do with a big snow storm. We will be running snow blowers and snowmobiles. Chimneys will get plugged. Generators will get fired up as power goes out. All of those provide an opportunity for carbon monoxide poisoning. Carbon monoxide is colorless and odorless. It is an insidious poison that can sneak up on you. And in the end; may prove to be deadly.
What can you do to protect yourself, your Friends and your family. First make sure you house or apartment has a working carbon monoxide detector. Like a smoke detector, it may save your life. Second, make sure generators, snowmobiles and snow blowers are all run outside away from your doors and windows. They need air and so do you. Don't use that kerosene heater. It also produced carbon monoxide.
Be smart, be safe and enjoy the snow.
On February 5, 1965 a young medical student got sick. He complained of severe pain on the right side of his upper abdomen. In total 84 people became ill with similar complaints. The course of the disease sounds eerily like a disease plaguing the world today. The patients initially had right upper quadrant pain. Then after a short period of feeling better they developed flu-like symptoms, jaundice and liver tenderness. After that, they gradually improved.
This article in the British Medical Journal tells the story. The culprit was fresh bread from a bakery in Epping, England. Thankfully it is not whole wheat or ground flour that caused the illness. It was an epoxy hardener, 4,4-diaminodiphenylmethane, that was spilled on the bags of flour. The chemical was known to cause hepatic damage in large doses. In this cause it caused hepatic injury in very small doses. Fascinating story.
So what does this look like to you? Everyday in hospitals across the state and around the world people present with a similar clinical picture. The culprit in not some strange epoxy resin. The culprit is acetaminophen. The drug we each take to treat everything from fever to headaches and sore backs. Thankfully we do not have crazy outbreaks of Tylenol poisoning. Instead we have the daily grind (and not of wheat) of accidental overuse.
