Which agents cause dyspnea, cough, wheezing, runny nose, and sore throat and are commonly referred to as choking agents?

• A. Vesicants
• B. Biological agents
• C. Pulmonary agents
• D. Blood agents

Answer: (C)

Pulmonary irritants, often called choking agents, produce symptoms by irritating the lining of the nose, throat, and especially the airways. When inhaled, they trigger inflammation and increased mucus in the respiratory tract, leading to a cascade of coughing, runny nose, sore throat, wheezing, and difficulty breathing. The feeling of being unable to catch your breath comes from airway narrowing and swelling, not from skin injury or systemic metabolic effects. Chlorine and phosgene are classic examples that illustrate how these agents irritate the lungs and provoke rapid airway irritation.

This pattern distinguishes them from other categories: vesicants mainly cause skin and eye blistering; biological agents cause illness through infection or toxin production in the body; and blood agents interfere with cellular respiration systemically rather than causing primary airway irritation.