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Inhalational anaesthetic agent consumption within a multidisciplinary veterinary teaching hospital: an environmental audit
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

Inhalational anaesthetic agent consumption within a multidisciplinary veterinary teaching hospital: an environmental audit

Dany Elzahaby, Alessandro Mirra, Olivier L. Levionnois and Claudia Spadavecchia
Scientific reports, Vol.14(1), 17973
2024
PMID: 39095518
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CC BY V4.0 Open Access

Abstract

Multidisciplinary Sciences Science & Technology Science & Technology - Other Topics
Inhalational anaesthetic agents are routinely used in veterinary anaesthesia practices, yet their consumption contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions and environmental impact. We conducted a 55-day observational study at a veterinary teaching hospital in Switzerland, monitoring isoflurane and sevoflurane consumption across small, equine and farm animal clinics and analysed the resulting environmental impact. Results revealed that in total, 9.36 L of isoflurane and 1.27 L of sevoflurane were used to anaesthetise 409 animals across 1,489 h. Consumption rates varied among species, with small and farm animals ranging between 8.7 and 13 mL/h, while equine anaesthesia exhibited a higher rate, 41.2 mL/h. Corresponding to 7.36 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent in total environmental emissions or between 2.4 and 31.3 kg of carbon dioxide equivalent per hour. Comparison to human anaesthesia settings showed comparable consumption rates to small animals, suggesting shared environmental implications, albeit on a smaller scale. This research highlights the importance of continued evaluation of veterinary anaesthesia practices to balance patient safety with environmental stewardship; potential mitigation strategies are explored and discussed.

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UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

This output has contributed to the advancement of the following goals:

#3 Good Health and Well-Being
#13 Climate Action
#14 Life Below Water

Source: InCites

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Citation topics
8 Earth Sciences
8.124 Environmental Sciences
8.124.1648 Climate Health Risks
Web Of Science research areas
Veterinary Sciences
ESI research areas
Clinical Medicine
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