LOS ANGELES — For close to 150 years, nitrous oxide has been used for anesthesia at healthcare facilities, but one local hospital has moved on.
Keck Hospital of USC has moved away from using nitrous oxide, otherwise known as laughing gas, for sedating patients for surgeries. The decision came after anesthesiologists discovered the harmful effects of nitrous oxide on the environment.
“You’re really not thinking about the impact of that practice and its carbon footprint,” said Dr. Arash Motamed, who is the medical director of sustainability with Keck Hospital. “And as it turns out, anesthetic agents are major greenhouse gases.”…