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I N H A L A T I O N A L
A N E S T H E S I A
COUNTERPOINT
Is Low-Flow Worth It?
C
an low-flow techniques really help control anesthesia-related
expenses and improve case outcomes? George Mychaskiw II,
DO, professor of anesthesiology at the University of Central
Florida College of Medicine, isn't so sure.
He says there's "no doubt" low-flow techniques result in lower anesthetic costs, but questions how much savings are truly realized. He
claims an entire year of low-flow anesthesia results in annual savings
of "only" $3,000 per OR.
"Enhanced anesthesia system technology, better vaporizers, and
inhaled anesthetics of lower solubility now permit anesthetists to deliver
low and minimal flows with an acceptable margin of safety, so it logically follows that all anesthesia should be conducted at low and minimal
flow," he writes in the October-December 2012 issue of the Journal of
Anesthesiology Clinical Pharmacology.
Dr. Mychaskiw, however, points to a lack of clinical evidence that
proves the beneficial impact of low-flow anesthesia on core body temperature or airway moisture. He does concede that it's unlikely the
humidification of fresh gas flows is a bad thing, so he considers lowflow "a reasonable, albeit not well-supported, practice."
— Daniel Cook
F E B R U A R Y 2013 | O U T PAT I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E O N L I N E
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