Carbon monoxide poisoning

[Britney]

Carbon monoxide poisoning is common.
Symptoms may include headache, nausea, drowsiness, and confusion.
The diagnosis is based on blood tests.
Carbon monoxide detectors, adequate venting of furnaces and other sources of indoor combustion, and not allowing a car to run in an enclosed space (for example, a closed garage) help prevent carbon monoxide poisoning.
Treatment includes fresh air and high concentrations of oxygen, sometimes using a hyperbaric (high-pressure) oxygen chamber.

(See also Overview of Poisoning.)
Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless gas that, when inhaled, prevents the blood from carrying oxygen and prevents the tissues from using oxygen effectively. Small amounts are not usually harmful, but poisoning occurs if levels of carbon monoxide in the blood become too high. Carbon monoxide disappears from the blood after several hours.
Smoke from fires commonly contains carbon monoxide, particularly when combustion of fuels is incomplete. If improperly vented, automobiles, furnaces, hot water heaters, gas heaters, kerosene heaters, and stoves (including wood stoves and stoves with charcoal briquettes) can cause carbon monoxide poisoning. For example, when the exhaust pipe of a running car is blocked by piled-up snow or another object, carbon monoxide levels rise inside the car rapidly and can be fatal. Inhaling tobacco smoke produces carbon monoxide in the blood, but usually not enough to result in symptoms of poisoning.