Refrigerant poisoning

The poisonous ingredient includes fluorinated hydrocarbons.

The poisonous ingredients may be found in:

• Various refrigerants
• Some fumigants

This list may not be all-inclusive.

LUNGS

• Breathing difficulty
• Throat swelling (which may also cause breathing difficulty)

EYES, EARS, NOSE, AND THROAT

• Severe pain in the throat
• Severe pain or burning in the nose, eyes, ears, lips, or tongue
• Loss of vision

STOMACH AND INTESTINES

• Severe abdominal pain
• Vomiting
• Burns of the food pipe (esophagus)
• Vomiting blood
• Blood in the stool

HEART AND BLOOD

• Irregular heart rhythms
• Collapse

SKIN

• Irritation
• Burn
• Necrosis (holes) in the skin or underlying tissues

Most symptoms result from breathing in the substance.

Seek emergency medical care right away. Move the person to fresh air. Be careful to avoid being overcome by the fumes while helping someone else.

Contact poison control for further information.

Determine the following information:

• The person's age, weight, and condition
• The name of the product (ingredients and strength, if known)
• The time it was swallowed or inhaled
• The amount swallowed or inhaled

Your local poison control center can be reached directly by calling the national toll-free Poison Help hotline (1-800-222-1222) from anywhere in the United States. This national hotline will let you talk to experts in poisoning. They will give you further instructions.

This is a free and confidential service. All local poison control centers in the United States use this national number. You should call if you have any questions about poisoning or poison prevention. It does NOT need to be an emergency. You can call for any reason, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

You can also get online poison help now at poisonhelp.org. Just enter the product, poison, or medicine to get expert help.

Your health care provider will measure and monitor your vital signs, including temperature, pulse, breathing rate, and blood pressure. You may receive:

Tests that may be done include:

• Blood and urine tests
• Chest x-ray
• Electrocardiogram (ECG)

Treatment may include:

• Activated charcoal
• Fluids through the vein (IV)
• Medicines to treat symptoms or to reverse the effect of the poison (antidote)
• Laxative
• Breathing support, including tube through the mouth into the lungs, and breathing machine (ventilator)
• Tube through the mouth into the stomach to wash out the stomach (gastric lavage)
• Endoscopy - a camera placed down the throat to see burns in the esophagus and the stomach
• Washing of the skin (irrigation), perhaps every few hours for several days
• Skin debridement (surgical removal of burned skin)

How well a person does depends on the severity of the poisoning and how quickly medical help was received.

Severe lung damage may occur. Survival past 72 hours usually means the person will have a complete recovery.

Sniffing Freon is extremely dangerous and can lead to long-term brain damage and sudden death.

Coolant poisoning; Freon poisoning; Fluorinated hydrocarbon poisoning; Sudden sniffing death syndrome

Nelson LS, Calello DP. Acute poisoning. Goldman L, Cooney KA, eds. Goldman-Cecil Medicine. 27th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2024:chap 96.

Theobald JL, Corcoran JN. Poisoning. In: Kliegman RM, St. Geme JW, Blum NJ, et al, eds. Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics. 22nd ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2025:chap 94.

Wang GS, Buchanan JA. Hydrocarbons. In: Walls RM, ed. Rosen's Emergency Medicine: Concepts and Clinical Practice. 10th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2023:chap 147.

Updated by: Jesse Borke, MD, CPE, FAAEM, FACEP, Attending Physician at Kaiser Permanente, Orange County, CA. Also reviewed by David C. Dugdale, MD, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.