Prevalence of respiratory symptoms in Nigerian firefighters

Introduction Smoke inhalation is the breathing in of the harmful gases, vapours, and particulate matter contained in smoke. Smoke inhalation typically occurs in victims of fire caught in structural fires. People trapped in fire may suffer from inhalation independent of receiving skin burns. However, the incidence of smoke inhalation increases with the percentage of total body surface burned.1 Inhalation of smoke causes a broad spectrum of adverse respiratory effects, ranging from mild irritations of the upper airways to severe tracheobronchitis, bronchospasm, pulmonary