Medical Gas: What Are the Different Types?

HomeBlogMedical Gas: What Are the Different Types?

Medical gas is used in hospitals during operations, recovery and in patient rooms. There are several different types of gas that are used for medical purposes, some for anesthesia, some for treatment, and some for use with medical devices and tools.

Medical Gas: What Are the Different Types?

  • Nitrous Oxide. A mixture of oxygen and nitrous oxide is inhaled by a patient and used as an anesthetic during procedures in places like dental offices. Just the right mixture must be used because too large of an amount of nitrous oxide can lead to suffocation.
  • Oxygen gas is used to provide additional oxygen for those patients who are oxygen deficient. Long-term use of oxygen concentration generally does not exceed 30-40% as it is harmful for humans to inhale pure oxygen over a long period of time. Oxygen is administered through a flow meter for those patients who need a short-term treatment of oxygen. Patients who are critically ill breathe oxygen through a ventilator. High-pressure tanks of oxygen are also used to treat patients for gas poisoning, drug nebulization, and diving.
  • Compressed Air. Oral surgical instruments, ventilators and orthopedic instruments are powered with compressed air.
  • Nitrogen is used to drive medical equipment and tools while liquid nitrogen is commonly used in cryosurgery in gynecology, stomatology, and ophthalmology.
  • Carbon Dioxide. Carbon dioxide is used during laparoscopy and colonoscopy to inflate the abdominal cavity.

Medical gas systems are a critical aspect of hospital care. If you would like more information about medical gas, please give us a call at Pure-Line Plumbing today!