Toxicity of fire fumes

Smoke toxicity is the main factor behind fire-related incapacitation and death. However, assessing toxicity is tricky, as smoke is a complex mixture of chemical compounds. It is also important to separate the effects of acute exposure from chronic or environmental effects. In recent years, models have been developed to characterize the risk induced by exposure to fire fumes, depending on their composition, the duration of exposure and the effect considered.