- Study Suggests Earlier Is Better for Heart Valve Replacement Procedures
- Bird Flu Infection Confirmed in a Pig for First Time in U.S.
- Election Fears Are Keeping Americans Awake at Night, Survey Shows
- Most Patients Can Keep Using GLP-1 Weight Loss Meds Before Surgeries
- When This Black Cat Crossed His Path, It Was a Lucky Day for Medicine
- Staying In: Did Pandemic Shift Americans’ Leisure-Time Habits Permanently?
- Costs for MS, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s Meds Keep Rising
- With Cases Rising, What You Need to Know About Whooping Cough
- Halloween Candy: Don’t Get Spooked by All That Sugar
- Check Your Cabinet: Some COVID Test Expiration Dates Have Been Extended, FDA Says
Nitrous Oxide OK During Surgery for People With Heart Disease
Nitrous oxide, commonly known as “laughing gas,” is a safe anesthetic for surgery patients who have or are at risk of heart disease, a new study finds.
The findings are “welcome news because nitrous oxide is widely used around the world as part of the mixture of agents for general anesthesia,” lead author Dr. Kate Leslie, a professor at Royal Melbourne Hospital in Australia, said in an American Society of Anesthesiologists news release.
“Nitrous oxide is inexpensive, simple to administer and helps with pain as well as anesthesia,” she added.
The research included nearly 6,000 patients. All had surgery that didn’t involve the heart. The study volunteers received either general anesthesia with nitrous oxide or general anesthesia with nitrogen.
A year after surgery, there was no difference in rates of heart attack, stroke, disability or death between the two groups, the study found.
The study is to be presented Sunday at the annual meeting of the American Society of Anesthesiologists, in San Diego. The study will also be published online Oct. 25 in the journal Anesthesiology.
“This helps alleviate concerns raised in recent years about the effect of nitrous oxide on the heart and vascular system,” Leslie said.
More information
The U.S. National Library of Medicine has more about anesthesia.
Source: HealthDay
Copyright © 2024 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Related
-
Late-Life Menopause Linked to Higher Asthma RiskWomen who enter menopause at a later age have...
- October 30, 2024
-
Biden Proposes That Insurers Cover Over-the-Counter Birth ControlHealth insurers would be required to cover the cost...
- October 21, 2024
-
Some IUDs May Raise The Odds for Breast Cancer, But Overall Risk Remains LowIntrauterine devices (IUDs) may raise the chances of a...
- October 18, 2024
-
Hope for New Test, Treatment for EndometriosisEndometriosis could be linked to the health of a...
- October 11, 2024
