Does Laughing Gas Induce a Fever?

Yes, the routine use of nitrous oxide in patients undergoing major surgery should be questioned. The American Dental Association, ADA, reports a clinical trial based in the United Kingdom, Asia and Australia recruited 2,050 adult patients. The trial randomly assigned them to two study groups, 70% nitrous/30% oxygen for one group or 20% nitrous/80% oxygen for the other group. The study evaluated if removing nitrous oxide from the anesthetic mixture for major surgery, lasting at least two hours, reduced the incidence of postoperative complications within 30 days of surgery.

This study was done by the Department of Anaesthesia and Perioperative Medicine, Alfred Hospital, Academic Board of Anaesthesia and Perioperative Medicinein Anesthesiology. It stated that the 70% N2O/30% O2 group included severe nausea and vomiting, and the following major complications: pneumonia, pneumothorax, pulmonary embolism, wound infection, myocardial infarction, venous thromboembolism, stroke, awareness, and death within 30 days of surgery. These results suggest that avoidance of nitrous oxide may be less important than high inspired oxygen, since it is very difficult to tell if less nitrous oxide or more oxygen made the difference.

While dentists commonly administer nitrous oxide to patients of all ages to reduce fear, anxiety, or un-cooperativeness, the new Australian study did not represent or characterize how nitrous oxide is used for analgesia and sedation in dental practice. For dental applications, nitrous oxide is generally administered at lower concentrations, typically 50% or less with a correspondingly higher oxygen level.  According to Anesthesiology, nitrous oxide is certainly useful for inhalation inductions in children, as well as for analgesia in patients having dental procedures.

According to the NIOSH NMAM, Manual of Analytical Methods for Nitrous, OSHA, Occupational Safety and Health Administration has no standard for nitrous oxide, NIOSH, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health recommends nitrous at 25 ppm (parts per million) and ACGIH, American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists recommends nitrous at 50 ppm.

I have found no studies or side effects indicating that nitrous oxide induces a fever.

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