London Explosions: Some victims may have sustained "shock lung"

Jim Ryan, head of the major incident team at University College Hospital in central London, has said that some of the victims may have sustained, "shock lung." The British Lung Foundation, describes shock lung syndrome as typically manifesting after 24 hours.

The term "shock lung," was coined when soldiers in the Vietnam war developed ARDS, (Acute respiratory distress syndrome,) after damage to their respiratory systems. It describes the breathlessness due to bilateral infiltrates, or "shadows" on the lung, that occur after the lung has been hurt.

The condition has been found in victims of bombings in Northern Ireland, Israel and India.

Following a series of bomb blasts in India in 1993, there were 3 deaths due to shock lung syndrome, which manifested after 24 hours.