Infrared laser spectroscopy on surgical smoke

Surgical smoke (Barrett and Garber, 2003) consists of gases, vapors and aerosols produced during surgery with lasers, ultrasonic scalpels and electroknives. In open surgery this smoke is produced in air, whereas in laparoscopic (minimally invasive surgery) it is usually produced in a carbon dioxide atmosphere. Three aspects of surgical smoke are important with respect to patient and medical staff safety: the chemical composition (gases/vapors), the biological composition (cells and cell fragments), and the particulate composition (sooth/aerosols). Most previous studies have been performed in vitro with gaschromatographic analyses of the generated smoke yielding mostly qualitative results on the chemical composition. The goal of this study is a systematic investigation of smoke produced in laparoscopic surgery in a C02 atmosphere. Smoke samples collected during surgery under different conditions (type of tissue and of surgical instrument (electroknife, ultrasonic scalpel)) will be analyzed.