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Subject: MEDICAL DEFENSE AGAINST BIOLOGICAL MATERIAL                     

Unit: OTSG        

Parent Organization: HSC         

Box  ID: BX003203

Folder Title: MEDICAL DEFENSE AGAINST BIOLOGICAL MATERIAL                                                     

Document Number:          1

Folder Seq  #:         47




                                      UNCLASSIFIED









            or intoxication by ingestion. Assurance that food and water
            supplies are free from contamination should be provided by
            appropriate preventive-medicine authorities in the event of
            an attack.

            e Dermal: Intact skin provides an excellent barrier for
            many but not all biological agents. Mucous membranes and
            abraded, or otherwise damaged, integument can, however,
            allow for passage of some bacteria and toxins, and should be
            protected in the event of an attack.

            Physical Protection: The most effective and singularly most
         important prophylaxis in defense aga @ t biological warfare
         agents is physical protection. Preventing exposure of the
         respiratory tract and mucous membranes (to include
         conjunctivae) to infectious and/or toxic aerosols through use
         of a full-face respirator will prevent exposure, and should,
         theoretically, obviate the need for additional measures.
         Chemical protective masks effectively filter biological hazards.

            Decontmm             ection of Health Cage Personnel: Any
         dermal exposure should be treated by soap and water
         decontamination. This can follow any needed use of chemical
         decontaminants but should be prompt. Secondary contamination
         from clothing, etc. of exposed soldiers to medical care
         personnel may be important, particularly from those individuals
         exposed near the dissemination source where large particle
         deposition may occur. Since it will be difficult to
         distinguish those soldiers exposed near the source from those
         contaminated some distance away, proper physical protection of
         health care providers or other persons handling exposed
         personnel should be maintained until decontamination is
ll. Clinical
         laboratory samples for toxin-exposed subjects can be dealt with
         routinely. Patients showing signs of pneumonic plaque
         generally should be considered hazardous, as some will disperse
         plague bacilli by aerosol. Anthrax could present a risk from
         open lesions or blood which could result in cutaneous anthrax.
         Anthrax does not pose a threat of aerosol dissemination from
         blood or during autopsy procedures, but sporulation of bacilli
         exposed to air theoretically could occur, with subsequent
         inhalation. On the other hand, plague and tularemia bacilli
         may be dangerous, since, under some circumstances, they are
         known to cause aerosol infections. Therefore, postmortem



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Document 40 f:/Week-36/BX003203/MEDICAL DEFENSE AGAINST BIOLOGICAL MATERIAL/medical defense against biological material:12179609282229
Control Fields 17
File Room = sep96_declassified
File Cabinet = Week-36
Box ID = BX003203
Unit = OTSG
Parent Organization = HSC
Folder Title = MEDICAL DEFENSE AGAINST BIOLOGICAL MATERIAL
Folder Seq # = 47
Subject = MEDICAL DEFENSE AGAINST BIOLOGICAL MATERIAL
Document Seq # = 1
Document Date =
Scan Date =
Queued for Declassification = 01-JAN-1980
Short Term Referral = 01-JAN-1980
Long Term Referral = 01-JAN-1980
Permanent Referral = 01-JAN-1980
Non-Health Related Document = 01-JAN-1980
Declassified = 17-DEC-1996