The composition of plume produced during carbon dioxide laser endoscopic treatment for endometriosis was examined to determine whether it represented a hazard to the surgical staff. A total of 32 plume samples were collected from 17 women undergoing laser laparoscopic treatment for endometriosis and/or adhesions. The smoke was found to consist of particles having a median aerodynamic diameter of 0.31 micron with a range of 0.10-0.80 micron. The size range has two consequences: 1) using a human red blood cell as a model for all cells, it can be stated with greater than 99.9999% certainty that no cell-size particles, including cancer cells, are present in the plume; 2) particles in this size range are too small to be effectively filtered by currently available surgical masks.
No takes yet. Share an insight, caveat, or question.
Nezhat et al. (1987) studied this question.