Poison attack at TU Darmstadt: Police, fire brigade and clinic in action

• fromClaudia Kabel

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Authorities, police and clinic work together in a poison attack like at the Technical University of Darmstadt. The FR explains how poisoning is detected and what to look out for.

Which departments are involved in a case of poisoning like at the TU Darmstadt?

Basically, an operation like the one at the TU is a police situation, so it is the responsibility of the state police authorities. The rescue service can get information from the control center at the poison emergency number. The examinations of the injured are carried out by the hospitals. The Darmstadt fire brigade was deployed to support the police and took samples on site and transported them to the Frankfurt fire brigade. An analytics unit is available there, which was able to provide initial information about the substances. (Daniel Klose, Press Office of the City of Darmstadt)

Who was treated in the hospital?

In the Darmstadt Clinic, three people affected were examined as a precautionary measure after possible contact with the toxic substance at the TU. As the clinic explained when asked by FR, no inpatient admission was required in any of the cases. A total of seven people were affected.

What is the difference between foreign substance poisoning and food poisoning?

Food poisoning results from eating spoiled food. These can be toxins in the food or pathogens such as salmonella. Symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps, diarrhea, fever and dizziness quickly develop. Food poisoning usually heals after a few days. It is important to take in sufficient amounts of fluids. Small children and the elderly have lower reserves of fluids and blood salts, so that you may need inpatient treatment.

Poisoning with other foreign substances can have very different symptoms. According to the effect of the toxins, the poisonings are divided into four groups. Similar symptoms occur within these groups: changes in pupil size and the secretion of body fluids, disorders of the heartbeat, breathing and consciousness up to cardiac or respiratory arrest or complete loss of consciousness. Other substances cause abnormal behavior, hallucinations, skin changes.

How is the procedure?

A detailed examination and questioning of the person concerned is important. If the patient is no longer able to provide information independently, it is important to get information from family, friends and acquaintances who can assess the situation in which the sick person was found. Information about previous illnesses, a medication plan and telephone numbers of contact persons are also important for further treatment.

How is poisoning diagnosed?

In the case of poisoning, the substance is most often detected in the blood or urine; hair or skin samples can also be used for detection. In typical food poisoning, stool samples are also examined. Blood and urine samples are examined for toxins in the laboratory. Here, the detection and the specification of the concentration of the toxin can provide further information for the treatment. If the cause of the suspected poisoning cannot be found, the symptoms are treated and further examinations are carried out.

What happens after the poison detection?

If poisons are detected, help can be obtained from the poison information center, which can advise the emergency services, doctors and private individuals on how to proceed.

Where are the samples analyzed?

The blood samples are examined in a blood gas analyzer located in the central emergency room. The first results are available after a few minutes. Then the blood samples are sent to the in-house laboratory for further tests. Special laboratories are available for very special examinations, such as the laboratory in the forensic medicine institute at the University of Frankfurt. (Sabine Jobmann, Clinic Director of the Central Emergency Department)

The poisoning at the TU had turned the extremities blue in those affected. Which substances cause this?

Poisoning with substances that inhibit gas exchange in the body can manifest itself as cyanosis (blue rash). These include carbon dioxide, cardiac arrhythmias, salicylic acid, pesticides and opiates.

Have there been any similar incidents of poisoning?

There are always poison attacks in the workplace. In Bad Nauheim, Hesse, a nurse baked biscuits for the colleagues. What sounds like a nice gesture made some colleagues dizzy and unconscious. According to the regional court in Gießen, the woman mixed sedatives and sleeping pills into her sweets and was sentenced to three years imprisonment for dangerous bodily harm in May 2020. In the community of Schloss Holte-Stukenbrock in North Rhine-Westphalia, a man poisoned his colleagues’ sandwiches for years, according to the Bielefeld Regional Court. He sprinkled powder with lead, mercury and cadmium compounds on the sandwiches. He was sentenced to life imprisonment and subsequent preventive detention in 2019. FR / dpa

Compiled by Claudia Kabel

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