Which agents cause skin and eye irritation and require irrigation after exposure?

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

Answer: (A)

Vesicants cause skin and eye irritation and require irrigation after exposure. These chemical agents penetrate moisture on the skin and eyes, leading to burning, redness, and blistering on the skin as well as irritation and potential injury to the eyes. Because they can continue to damage tissue after contact, rapid decontamination with copious irrigation is essential to dilute and remove the agent from the skin and eyes. In the field, this means flushing the skin and eyes with clean water or saline for several minutes, removing contaminated clothing, and preventing further exposure to others. Other agent types—biological, blood, or pulmonary agents—produce effects such as infection, metabolic disruption, or respiratory injury rather than the immediate skin blistering and eye irritation that characterizes vesicants.