Youth face “significant dangers” from “huffing” incidents like the one that happened last week involving an explosion in the city of Yellowknife. Dr. Andre Corriveau, Deputy Chief Public Health Officer, told True North FM that explosions like the one involving inhaled propane on Tuesday are not uncommon, with many severe health impacts at play that go beyond the risk of explosions and burns.
Like with Tuesday’s explosion victim, who initially presented with minor injuries before being transferred to critical care, the impacts of inhaling substances like propane are not always directly visible but can be immediate as well as long-term. Dr. Corriveau has seen these explosions before, where common household items like propane have been used as inhalants.
These items are often “readily available” in homes, in neighbourhoods and at stores, they don’t require access to the black market, which is why inhaling can be appealing to younger people, putting youth at risk.
“Propane tanks or you glues, nail polish – the kinds of things that might be readily available,” noted Corriveau, who explained that it’s often younger people who don’t have as much money who are more likely to inhale these substances.
“They’re appealing because you can get a high for a relatively low cost. So that’s one of the issues but they’re actually quite dangerous,” cautioned Corriveau.
Although household substances like propane are considered non-toxic, they are “quite dangerous” when inhaled and can pose significant health impacts, including sudden death.
There are ways to intervene to prevent the dangers, especially for youth who are more at risk.
“If we see or are aware of young people using those products, we need to talk to them about how serious it can be,” urges Dr. Corriveau.
“There are many types of inhalants that people might use for getting a high and they all have different side effects and risks because it depends on the compound that’s in the canister or the substance,” explained Corriveau.
“It’s hard to talk about them in a general sense because each one contains different compounds,” he continued, as each compound comes with its own set of health risks.
“One of the commonalities is that a lot of those substances have is that it goes into your lungs and then it quickly from there reaches the brain and other organs of the body and displaces oxygen. For example, propane, which is considered a non-toxic gas but because it’s a heavier gas than oxygen in the air and it will displace the oxygen,” explained Corriveau.
Propane prevents oxygen from getting to tissues in the body and can be fatal.
“So you end up with a gas in your lungs that doesn’t provide what your body needs, which is oxygen, There’s even sudden deaths that occur because the lung gets filled with propane and it’s heavier so they asphyxiate,” said Corriveau.
The lack of oxygen temporarily causes some kind of a euphoric feeling.
“It does provide some kind of a high, but it’s at a very high risk,” emphasized Dr. Corriveau.
Another problem with propane along with some other substances that are compressed is that because it is air put into a liquid form, it becomes very cold.
“There’s a temperature difference and especially if you tip the the canister and you end up absorbing some of the (frozen liquid), it might be at minus 40 or even lower temperatures, so it can cause a freezer burn in the mouth or in the in the trachea, down to the lungs,” explained Corriveau.
Another major danger with propane and some other inhalants is that they are flammable and can cause explosions and burns. This is what appeared to have happened Tuesday in Yellowknife. RCMP and the city reported that an initial investigation showed someone had been inhaling propane from inside a parked boat at a residence at the time of the explosion.
“If you light a match or a cigarette nearby, those fumes are flammable and it will cause an explosion. So that’s the other danger that can occur, and I’ve seen that more than once in my career across the North, where kids might be sniffing propane or gasoline under a building and then there’s an explosion and then a fire starts. They get severely burned,” said Corriveau.
Gasoline is another common substance that has been used as an inhalant. It is also flammable and can explode and cause burns, along with its own set of health risks.
“Gasoline is a solvent. So, it’s very toxic to nerve tissues in particular, in the brain. So, besides what I’ve talked about, displacing oxygen and hypoxia, (gasoline) goes into the bloodstream really quickly. It’s very toxic. So it can cause, severe damage to neurones and to the kidneys and other organs in the body,” cautioned Corriveau.
Inhaling gasoline can cause cell death in many critical organs, especially the brain and with repeated exposure, some of these health impacts could become permanent. Affects like memory loss and difficulties with focus and concentration, deafness, blindness and difficulties with motor control are among a whole range of potential impacts.
Exposure to things like gasoline or propane, causes hypoxia which requires immediate medical attention, because if you don’t have enough oxygen getting to your organs it can cause permanent damage and can be fatal.
“You can have sudden death because you have don’t have enough oxygen and you can’t clear that because the gas is heavier in your lungs, it stays there and it so you can’t get enough oxygen. It’s a commonly or certainly it’s a well reported side effect is that people just have a sudden death from sniffing, (called) sniffing death syndrome,” said Dr. Corriveau.
“Working up North I’ve seen people going into renal failure, liver failure or have the severe lasting brain damage from sniffing,” continued Corriveau.
Other common household substances used as inhalants, like glues have compounds that are very toxic to the brain, to nerve tissue, the kidneys and liver, cautioned Corriveau.
There are critical ways that people can intervene to prevent the dangers, especially for youth who are more at risk.
“First of all, you have to remove the exposure and then they may need to receive some supplemental oxygen and be brought to an emergency room to monitor for other damage in the body.
“You have to manage whatever the sequelles (complications) are,” urged Dr. Corriveau, who has treated young people who have gone into renal failure.
“They might have to go on dialysis for a while until the kidneys recover,” said Corriveau. “Those are all possible outcomes.”
