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Notice to Readers
NIOSH Alert: Request for Assistance in Controlling Exposures to
Nitrous Oxide During Anesthetic Administration
CDC's National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
(NIOSH) periodically issues alerts on workplace hazards that have
caused death, serious injury, or illness to workers. One such
alert, Request for Assistance in Controlling Exposures to Nitrous
Oxide During Anesthetic Administration (1), was published recently
and is available to the public. *
Nitrous oxide is used as an anesthetic agent in medical,
dental, and veterinary operatories. Occupational exposures in
dental operatories may be excessive and tend to be more difficult
to control than in general operating theaters. Approximately
424,000 workers (i.e., dentists, dental assistants, and dental
hygienists) practice dentistry in the United States; in a 1991
survey by the American Dental Association, 58% of dentists reported
having nitrous oxide anesthetic equipment.
Workers exposed to nitrous oxide may suffer adverse
reproductive effects and decreases in mental performance,
audiovisual ability, and manual dexterity. This alert presents
control measures for preventing or substantially reducing exposure
to nitrous oxide during administration of anesthetic gas. These
control measures should be part of a written comprehensive safety
and health plan for workers.
Reference
NIOSH. NIOSH alert: NIOSH request for assistance in controlling
exposures to nitrous oxide during anesthetic administration.
Cincinnati: US Department of Health and Human Services, Public
Health Service, CDC, 1994; DHHS publication no. (NIOSH)94-100.
Single copies of this document are available without charge from
the Publications Office, Division of Standards Development and
Technology Transfer, NIOSH, CDC, Mailstop C-13, 4676 Columbia
Parkway, Cincinnati, OH 45226-1998; telephone (800) 356-4674 ({513}
533-8328 for persons outside of the United States); fax (513)
533-8573.
Disclaimer
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**Questions or messages regarding errors in formatting should be addressed to mmwrq@cdc.gov.
