Table 2.
Summary of histologic findings in hairless guinea-pigs exposed to sulfur mustard (SM) vapor via vapor cup
| Author | Experimental design | Histology |
|---|---|---|
| Mershon et al.10 | 1–16 minutes of exposure to 10 μL of SM vapor. Qualitative histology assessed at 24 hours | 1 and 2 minutes of exposure: Minimal to mild epidermal intracellular edema 4 and 8 minutes of exposure: Intra- and/or intercellular edema, epidermolysis, acantholysis, pustular epidermatitis, epidermal–dermal separation, and epidermal necrosis Virtually no microvesicles with 4 minute exposure (1/39 skin sites), 8-minute exposure-induced microvesicles (31/40 skin sites) Increasing exposure time and severity of dermal damage associated with increased numbers of inflammatory cells (neutrophils/eosinophils) and increasing congestion and edema |
| Snider et al.17 | 3–12-minute exposure to 10μL of SM vapor Histology assessed at 24 hours. Report incidences and severity scores |
Epidermal necrosis incidence: 92% (severity score: 0.9) at 3 minutes of exposure; 100% incidence (3.6) at 12 minutes of exposure Follicular necrosis: 85% incidence (0.9) at 4 minutes, 100% incidence (2.2) at 12 minutes Pustular dermatitis: incidence < 20%, severity < 0.5 at all time points Microblisters: 6% incidence (0.1) at 5 minutes, 96% incidence (2.6) at 12 minutes |
| Yourick et al.15 | Sacrifice 2–24 hour post 8-minute exposure to 10μL SM. Incidence and severity (in some cases) reported |
Intracellular edema—First seen 2 hours postexposure, highest incidence at 24 hours Follicular necrosis—First seen at 4 hours, more pronounced at 8 hours. No severity score reported Pustular epidermatitis—First seen at 8 hours, peaked at 16 hours, remained high through 24 hours. No severity score reported Epidermal necrosis first observed at 8 hours, incidence peaked at 16 hours. Severity scores of 3–3.5 |
| Dachir et al.18 | Exposures 1, 5, 10, 15 and 30 minutes, 5μL SM Qualitative assessment of histopathology for sacrifices at 1, 24, 48 hours, 1 and 2 weeks following exposure. Incidence and severity not reported |
After a 15-minute SM exposure: At 1 hour postexposure: Morphological changes in nuclei in basal layer and congestion of blood vessels At 24 hours postexposure: Vesication and epithelial damage At 48 hours postexposure: Regenerative process began, consisting of a scab and new epidermis At 1 week postexposure: Epithelial coverage of the wound was only partial and new epidermis not fully attached to basement membrane After a 10 minute exposure: At 2 weeks: Epithelial hyperplasia, thickening of epidermis evident |