Assessment of Nitrous Oxide Concentration in the Air of Operating and Recovery Rooms of Hospitals of Babol University of Medical Sciences

Background and purpose: There are occupational hazards to Nitrous Oxide (N2O) in operating and recovery rooms of hospitals. These hazards include, decrease mental performance and audio-visual ability, and cause reduced fertility, spontaneous abortion and neurological, renal, and liver diseases. In this survey, concentration of Nitrous Oxide in indoor air of operating and recovery rooms in hospitals of Babol University of medical sciences was determined. Materials and Methods: This descriptive study was performed in 23 operating rooms and 3 recovery rooms in 3 educational hospitals of Babol University of medical sciences. The rooms with continuous usage of N2O with 2-3 lit/min of flow for general anesthesia were studied. For sampling and detection of N2O concentration as part per million (ppm), a portable IR spectrophotometer (3015 model of Bacharach Inc.) was used. The sampling was performed in 5 different points of the operating rooms and 1 point of recovery room in 3 different hours of work time (8:30-9AM, 10:30-11AM and 12:30-1:00PM. One-way ANOVA by SPSS 18 were used to analyze of data and compare the means. Results: Mean of N2O concentration in 5 different points of the operating rooms were 318± 22.6, 325.5± 24.1, 299± 21.8, and 301± 22, 314± 23.7 ppm and in recovery room were 51± 15 ppm. There was no significant difference between the means of N2O concentration in different points of the operating rooms, but between the means of N2O concentration in different points of the operating rooms and recovery room were significant (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Considering to the high average concentration of Nitrous Oxide in different operating and recovery rooms with maximum contamination levels of N2O, this situation puts at risk the health personnel. Therefore, further research and application protection utilizations are recommended.