Open AccessNitrous Oxide Anesthesia and Plasma Homocysteine in Adolescents
Author(s) -
Peter Nägele,
Danielle Tallchief,
Jane Blood,
Anshuman Sharma,
Evan D. Kharasch
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
anesthesia and analgesia/anesthesia and analgesia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.404
H-Index - 201
eISSN - 1526-7598
pISSN - 0003-2999
DOI - 10.1213/ane.0b013e31822402f5
Subject(s) - nitrous oxide , medicine , anesthesia , interquartile range , confidence interval , anesthetic
Nitrous oxide inactivates vitamin B(12), inhibits methionine synthase, and consequently increases plasma total homocysteine (tHcy). Prolonged exposure to nitrous oxide can lead to neuropathy, spinal cord degeneration, and even death in children. We tested the hypothesis that nitrous oxide anesthesia causes a significant increase in plasma tHcy in children.