background: nitrous oxide (n 2 o) is the oldest anesthetic in routine clinical use and its occupational exposure is under regulation by many countries. as studies are lacking to demonstrate the status of nitrous oxide levels in operating and recovery rooms of iranian hospitals, we aimed to study its level in teaching hospitals of tehran university of medical sciences. methods: during a 6-month ...

UNLABELLED The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health-recommended exposure levels for nitrous oxide exposure are 25 ppm as a time-weighted average over the time of exposure. The exposure limit for halogenated anesthetics (without concomitant nitrous oxide exposure) is 2 ppm. Inhaled sevoflurane provides an alternative to i.v. induction of anesthesia. However, the inadvertent rele...

PURPOSE To determine occupational exposure of the anesthesiologist and surgeon to nitrous oxide and desflurane during general anesthesia for ear-nose-throat (ENT) surgery in children and adults. METHODS An observational clinical trial was performed in ten children (C) and ten adults (A). Tracheas were intubated, in adults, with cuffed tubes and in children with uncuffed tubes. The operating r...

BACKGROUND We systematically reviewed evidence addressing the effectiveness of nitrous oxide for the management of labor pain, the influence of nitrous oxide on women's satisfaction with their birth experience and labor pain management, and adverse effects associated with nitrous oxide for labor pain management. METHODS We searched the MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Cumulative Index to Nursing and Alli...

AIMS To compare environmental and biological monitoring of midwives for nitrous oxide in a delivery suite environment. METHODS Environmental samples were taken over a period of four hours using passive diffusion tubes. Urine measurements were taken at the start of the shift and after four hours. RESULTS Environmental levels exceeded the legal occupational exposure standards for nitrous oxid...

This study was undertaken to quantify the exposure of operating room staff to nitrous oxide during routine paediatric otolaryngeal surgery and to determine the influence of the method of induction of anaesthesia on this exposure. The nitrous oxide exposure of the anaesthetist, the surgeon and the circulating nurse were measured, using body-worn passive atmospheric samplers, during twelve routin...

Various studies have implicated generalized health problems with chronic exposure to trace levels of nitrous oxide. Recent investigations have reported that higher-than-recommended levels of nitrous oxide exist in the breathing zone of the dental staff. This study was undertaken to accurately determine waste nitrous oxide levels during pediatric sedations and to evaluate the effect of scavengin...

An endotracheal tube designed to reduce nitrous oxide-induced intracuff pressure increases (Mallinckrodt Brandt rediffusion tracheal tube) and its relationship to nitrous oxide exposure was studied. Thirty-two subjects undergoing general anesthesia with endotracheal intubation used either a conventional endotracheal tube (Mallinckrodt Intermediate Hi-Lo) or a nitrous oxide rediffusion endotrach...

Nitrous oxide is the longest serving member of the anesthesiologist's pharmacologic armamentarium but remains a source of controversy because of fears over its adverse effects. Recently, the Evaluation of Nitrous oxide In a Gas Mixture for Anaesthesia (ENIGMA) trial reported that nitrous oxide use increases postoperative complications; further preclinical reports have suggested that nitrous oxi...

A systematic review was conducted to determine the efficacy and safety of nitrous oxide for labor analgesia. Eleven randomized controlled trials with adequate control groups and outcome assessment by parturients during or shortly after the intervention were used to determine efficacy. To determine adverse outcome, descriptions found in 8 controlled trials and in 8 observational studies were inc...