Review on Chronic Impacts of Carbon Monoxide Intoxication on Some Routine Vitreous and Blood Investigations

Carbon monoxide (CO) is a toxic gas produced as a result of incomplete combustion of organic materials. The source of CO production is very common especially in nations that depend on power generating sets for electricity. Chronic disease is non-communicable and usually takes a longer time to manifest. Examples are kidney failure, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, cancer, and cardiac arrest. These diseases are now very common in society, not sparing the youthful population that was rare ab initio. The major difficulty in the containment of chronic diseases is the inability to establish a definitive causative agent. The definite causative agent is important in public health and management of chronic diseases. Preventive medicine is anchored on establishing the causative agent of a disease. Without knowing the causative agent of a disease, the path to prevention becomes very cumbersome. The knowledge of the causative agent of a disease is the bedrock of preventive medicine and public health. Several reasons such as lifestyle modification, hereditary, climate change, nutrition or aging have been adduced as the cause of chronic diseases. These reasons are quite weak and not definite. The exact causative agent(s) of chronic diseases is a conundrum that needs a deliberate study and review so as to enhance definite diagnosis, preventive measures and appropriate therapeutic intervention. Measurement of biochemical and haematological parameters are employed in disease diagnosis and management. Alterations of these parameters are used to identify chronic diseases and also form part of an alarm system of a potential breakdown of the normal functioning of the body. The effect of chronic CO intoxication on these parameters could be of importance in establishing causative agent(s) of diseases that are for long opaque and non-definite. This review was therefore designed to interrogate various narratives, meta-analysis, and researches on this subject. Explicit knowledge of the pattern or presentation of biochemical and haematological parameters arising from chronic CO intoxication could be of great importance in preventive medicine, disease diagnosis and appropriate therapeutic intervention.