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The diagnosis of morbidity or mortality by poisoning is one of the most difficult to discover and to prove scientifically; It requires cooperation in the efforts of attending physician, pathologist, and toxicologist. If treatment of poisoning is to be effective, in most cases it must be started immediately; analytical techniques must be rapid and up-to-date so that an early diagnosis can be established.
Kaye's Emergency Toxicology (third edition) describes rapid and presumptive tests for the common poisons, such as alcohol (ethyl and methyl), aspirin, salicylates, phenothiazines, barbiturates, arsenic, mercury, carbon monoxide, and bromides. These tests (including infrared spectrophotometry, gas chromatography, and thin layer chromatography) are reliable, relatively simple, and easily performed. Each is described in detail, and in most cases several tests for each poison are offered so that each laboratory will have the option of choosing those best suited to their facilities and needs.
The book is divided