How long should the skin or eyes be flushed with water in the event of a chemical exposure?
Most standard sources recommend that water flushing following skin or eye contact with a chemical should continue for 15 or 20 minutes. However, all chemicals do not cause the same degree of effects (some are non-irritants while others can cause severe corrosive injury). Therefore, it makes sense to tailor the duration of flushing to the known effects of the chemical or product, as follows: • 5-minutes for non-irritants or mild irritants, • 15-20 minutes for moderate to severe irritants and chemicals that cause acute toxicity if absorbed through the skin, • 30 minutes for most corrosives, and • 60 minutes for strong alkalis (e.g. sodium, potassium or calcium hydroxide). It is very important that water flushing start immediately following skin or eye contact with a chemical. It is better if complete water flushing occurs on-site. However, moving the victim to an emergency care facility earlier may be necessary depending on the victim’s condition (e.g. compromised airways, breathing or c
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