As one of the most important vesicant agents, the destructive properties of mustards on the skin, eyes and respiratory system, combined with a lack of antidote, makes them effective weapons. Such weapons are inexpensive, easily obtainable and frequently stockpiled. Sulphur mustard (mustard gas) has been used as a chemical warfare agent in at least 10 conflicts. In this article, the use of mustard as a potential agent of chemical warfare and terrorism is outlined. The dose-dependent effects of acute sulphur mustard exposure on the skin, eyes, and respiratory system are described, as well as the possible extents of injuries, the mechanisms of action and the long-term complications. Prevention and management of mustard exposure are briefly discussed. The need for awareness and preparedness in the dermatological community regarding mustard exposure is emphasized.

All the women had problematic lives, affected by a multitude of factors, and raised a number of serious concerns that related to health and social care. This has implications for practice and service provision, as demonstrated by the data from GPs and health visitors, in, for example, the provision of advice and information (and in different languages), training, improved communication and inter-agency working, in this area (where the research was conducted) and elsewhere in England. More research is needed to further explore the needs of women from minority ethnic groups, taking issues of, for example, cultural specificity and urbanity/rurality into account. Further research also needs to investigate ways of offering help and support to this patient group.

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Natural and man-made disasters carry with them major burden and very often the focus is on immediate survival and management of resulting infectious diseases. The impact of disasters directly and indirectly on the well-being and mental health of those affected often gets ignored. The reasons are often stigma and lack of attention to mental health consequences. In addition, often the focus is on preventing the spread of infectious diseases such as waterborne or airborne diseases. This is further complicated by the fact that often aid agencies in offering aid tend to focus on communicable diseases and not on mental health of populations. This focus may reflect easily to measure outcomes in comparison with mental illnesses as the global burden of disease is likely to increase in the next few decades. There is an urgent need to apply the principles of social justice on social and health care policies, which will lead to elimination of stigma. In this article, we propose that the impact of mental illness as a result of disasters needs to be taken seriously in any planning and delivery of relief. Mental health is likely to be affected both directly and indirectly as a result of disasters and also likely to be influenced by ongoing factors such as poor housing, overcrowding and other social determinants. In addition to deliver equity between physical and mental illnesses, appropriate and adequate resources are needed so that identifiable needs can be met with clear outcomes.

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