Polymer Lung

Polymer lung, also known as plastic lung lung, is an occupational illness caused when a person inhales certain chemical agents.

Symptoms

The most common symptoms of polymer lung are a burning sensation in the eyes, nose, throat, and lungs. Lacrimation and congestion commonly accompany these symptoms. A victim may notice a thin film of polymer forming on exposed wet surfaces on and around their body; this may manifest as a loss of smell or taste. Shortly after the initial symptoms, those with dangerously high doses of the offending chemical begin to suffer shortness of breath and a wracking cough which brings up mucous banded with freshly-formed polymer grains, strands, or film. As the chemicals involved with polymer lung can kill the cells within mucous membranes, victims will later begin to expel the dead tissues in coughs.

Treatment

As the disease remains relatively uncommon and is difficult to treat in severe cases, there is currently no standard of care for polymer lung beyond what can be done for any other form of chemical gas attack injuries. Treatment for polymer lung with current technology generally involves supportive and palliative care. Supplemental oxygen and mechanical ventilation often becomes necessary in severe cases.

Prognosis

Many cases of polymer lung unavoidably progress to permanent disfigurement, blindness, loss of taste, or loss of smell in addition to the defining impairment to lung function. Concentration and duration of exposure are the major determining factors of chronic illness stemming from the exposure, with high exposure causing death through respiratory failure.

Sequela

Due to extensive lung damage, many sufferers of polymer lung have reduced lifespans and a higher lifetime risk of severe respiratory illness.

Affected Groups

Citizens of Tartagloam - largely Elovisian in ethnicity - are far and away the largest proportion of polymer lung sufferers in the Manifold today. The next most common group of people to acquire polymer lung are citizens of Craterhold who live in industrial centers outside of the capitol city, as occupational safety 'rules' are regarded more as 'suggestions' in the lands of certain noble houses.

Prevention

Ventilation, containment alarms, and properly-worn respirators can prevent or greatly reduce the severity of polymer lung acquired in an occupational setting. When the Siege of Tartagloam occurred, individuals in the city who responded to the air raid sirens by donning their gas masks were virtually unaffected by polymer lung in the aftermath. In contrast, those whose first response was to enter air raid bunkers close to the industrial district were more likely to succumb or be inflicted with polymer lung upon survival.

History

Tartagloam lung, another name for polymer lung, derives from the fact that some of the survivors of the Siege of Tartagloam were afflicted by the disease when the local industrial hub - a polymer production facility - was bombarded and lost chemical containment. While many citizens near the factory died immediately or in the days and weeks to follow - preserved as grotesque plasticized 'mannequins' - a few would go on to survive with extensive damage to their mucous membranes, including eyes, noses, and lungs. While scattered reports of polymer lung had been identified since the advent of the particular process used at the Tartagloam facility, the Siege was the first large-scale cluster of cases in the histor of the Manifold.

Type

Chemical Compound

Cycle

Chronic, Acquired

Rarity

Rare