Exposition des Personals gegenüber Sevofluran: Ergebnisse orts- und personenbezogener Messungen nach Abschalten der zentralen Lachgasversorgung im Klinikum der Universität Regensburg

Background. Occupational exposure to volatile anaesthetics cannot be completely avoided even in modern operating theatres. In 1997, the staff exposure dureing balanced anaesthesia in our hospital was low (sevoflurane 0.49 ppm; N 2 O 11.5 ppm. In 1999, N 2 O was completely omitted at our hospital, therefore, exposure to volatile anaesthetics, namely sevoflurane, might have increased. Methods. Environmental exposure was measured by photoacoustic infrared spectrometry. To determine the personal exposure and to compare it with environmental exposure, 14 anaesthetists wore diffusion samplers near their breathing zones for 1 week. Results. The median environmental concentration of sevoflurane was between 0.09 and 0.21 ppm in central operating the atres and between 0 and 24,8 ppm in intervention rooms. The median personal conCondusion. The occupational exposure to volatile anaesthetics is not higher using sevoflurane along compared to the combination of sevoflurane and N 2 O. In addition, the data acquired from environmentaland personal measurements showed similar results.