1 / 11

Nitrous Oxide Hazards and Proper Use College of Dental Medicine

Nitrous Oxide Hazards and Proper Use College of Dental Medicine. What is Nitrous Oxide?. Nitrous oxide (N 2 0) is nonflammable, colorless gas with pleasant, sweet odor and taste Also called dinitrogen monoxide or laughing gas

leannm
Download Presentation

Nitrous Oxide Hazards and Proper Use College of Dental Medicine

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Nitrous OxideHazards and Proper UseCollege of Dental Medicine

  2. What is Nitrous Oxide? • Nitrous oxide (N20) is nonflammable, colorless gas with pleasant, sweet odor and taste • Also called dinitrogen monoxide or laughing gas • When inhaled, it produces relaxation, and a reduced sensibility to pain

  3. Uses • Anesthetic agent in dental, medical and veterinary operations • Analgesic agent for conscious sedation in dental operations • Other uses include foaming agent for whipped cream and component of rocket fuels

  4. Exposure Routes & Safe Limits • Inhalation – common exposure route • Dermal – in liquid form • NIOSH: 25 ppm time-weighted average for duration of use • ACGIH: 50 ppm time-weighted average for 8 hour of use

  5. Metabolism • Mixed with oxygen for surgical anesthesia • Absorbed by diffusion through inhalation • Eliminated through respiration • Elimination half-life is ~ 5 minutes • Minimally metabolized through excretion

  6. Health Effects Exposure to high concentrations may cause Acute Effects: • Breathing difficulty and asphyxia from abuse by inhalation • Nausea or Headache • Vitamin B12 interference • Frostbite in liquid form Chronic Effects: • Megaloblastic bone-marrow depression • Neurological symptoms • Adverse reproductive effects

  7. Potential for Exposure in Dental Clinics • Inadequate Ventilation Systems • Inadequate Scavenging Systems • Equipment Malfunction • Equipment failure • Leaks due to poor connections • Poor Technique or Use • Uncooperative Patient

  8. Exposure Controls Engineering Controls • General room ventilation provides 12 air changes per hour hence keeping the Nitrous Oxide concentration <25ppm • Scavenging system used when administering N2O captures all exhaled and unused gas and keeps out of the office area thereby protecting you • Report any damage and non-functional scavenging and ventilation systems

  9. Exposure Controls Proper work practices, training, patient and equipment management are part of administrative controls and contribute to controlling N2O exposure to you • Inspect delivery system prior to N2O administration • Check connections, breathing bags, hoses and clamps. • Do not fill breathing bag to capacity • Over inflation can cause excessive leakage from the mask • The bag should collapse and expand as the patient breathes • Flush the system of N2O after the procedure by administering O2 to the patient for five minutes before disconnecting the gas delivery system Improper Fit Proper Fit

  10. Exposure Assessments Surveys performed by consultant to ensure systems are working properly and- • Nitrous oxide levels are < 5ppm • Air changes are adequate (> 10ACH) in rooms • All rooms are confirmed to be under negative pressure

  11. occusafety@columbia.edu

More Related