ACTION OF CYANIDES 



443 



Allow the animal to recover and watch carefully for the 

 appearance of an irregular form of respiration. Cheyne- 

 Stokes respiration is often produced by cyanides. Injec-t 

 some more sodium sulphide after a time to see how the 

 drug acts then. How does the sulphide affect the oxygen 

 consumption ? 



Fig. 348. Tracing showing the action of potassium cyanide on the blood-pressure and 

 respiration of a dog anesthetized with nitrous oxide. 



If the animal is still in fair condition (as it probably is) 

 insert a straight cannula into one femoral artery and draw 

 off five cubic centimeters of blood into a test tube. Then 

 pour one cubic centimeter of your cyanide solution into the 

 blood, shake up the mixture and examine its color closely. 



