Practice on medical support in dealing with abandoned chemical weapons by Japanese army in China / 解放军医学杂志

ABSTRACT

Japanese abandoned chemical weapons (JACWs) are a momentous and eventful historical issue for both China and Japan. Large quantities of chemical weapons abandoned by the Japanese invaders still remain on Chinese soil after 1945 when Japanese invaders were defeated and surrendered. Up to date, JACWs have been found in 19 provinces (cities or districts) of mainland China. The types of JACWs include chemical bombs, chemical aerial bombs, gas cylinders and loose packed barrels. The types of toxic agents include mustard gas, irritant agents, choking agents, systemic poisoning agents and etc. In order to eliminate JACWs to reduce injuries produced by toxic agents, Chinese government, in cooperation with Japanese government, organized a special troop to search, excavate, retrieve, and destroy JACWs. Up to date, about 50,000 pieces of poisonous chemical had retrieved and destroyed. The first operation was officially begun in Nanjing in October 2010. The main points of medical support on the operation of destroying JACWs include proper treatment of the newly discovered patients caused by JACWs, preparedness for handling the emergency medical rescue, and to actively p rovide routine medical support for JACWs operation field.