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  1. Home
  2. Knowledge Base
  3. Advanced Anaesthesia for Surgical or Prolonged Procedures (EU21)
  4. An introduction to inhalational agents for surgical or prolonged procedures

An introduction to inhalational agents for surgical or prolonged procedures

Inhalational agents can be used to provide safe and effective anaesthesia in virtually all laboratory species. A number of different anaesthetic agents are available – isoflurane, desflurane, sevoflurane and nitrous oxide. Modern volatile anaesthetic agents are very potent. All are liquids at room temperature and vaporise readily, so they must be delivered using a purpose-made vaporiser. 

The concentration of anaesthetic needed to induce and maintain anaesthesia varies between the different agents.


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Updated on 12th May 2020

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