University of Leuven
Mark Sabbe, University of Leuven and a practicing emergency physician at the university hospitals, was responsible for setting up the European Guidelines for the Therapy of Smoke Inhalation Victims. Prof.
Sabbe described the assessment and treatment of fire victims, emphasizing the need to understand quickly what the victim had inhaled, and hence the diagnostic value of knowing what fuels had contributed to the fire. He outlined the benefits of hydrogen cyanide antidotes, and observed that HCN was a significant toxicant in most fire smoke victims.