ABSTRACT
The propensity to induce central effects depends on the Organophosphorus pesticide and its ability to induce them before life-threatening peripheral effects start, especially respiratory failure, which will engage the medical staff to start sedation and mechanical ventilation. Brain hypercholinergy initiates epileptic seizures. The first specific electroencephalographic description of soman-induced seizures and effects of a benzodiazepine on monkeys was reported by J. A. Lipp. Tests commonly used in the evaluation of seizure-related brain damage and neuroprotective studies in rodents are memory tests, including open mazes and the novel object reconnaissance task. Unabated and long-lasting seizures will be accompanied by long-term neurological sequelae, including cognitive and behavioral deficits, accompanied by impaired neurogenesis. Due to the very fast spreading of the initial seizures to the entire brain, within minutes after nerve agent poisoning, determining the exact sites of seizure initiation proved difficult. An antitussive drug, caramiphen, has also been shown to protect against lethality, seizures, and brain damage in guinea-pigs poisoned with soman.
