Effect of occupational exposure to waste anesthetic gases in the oxidative stress

Abstract

There is a few data in Brazil concerning the monitoring of occupational exposure to waste anesthetic gases, and the possible toxic effects of these anesthetics in relation to oxidative stress remains unclear. Thus, the current study was designed to evaluate the oxidative stress (lipid peroxidation and antioxidant capacity) in medical residents exposed to a mixture of waste anesthetic gases. The study will be performed in 60 subjects: 30 medical residents from Anesthesiology and Surgery areas with three years of exposure to the following waste anesthetic gases: isoflurane, sevoflurane, desflurane and nitrous oxide at the surgical center of the Hospital of Botucatu Medical School - UNESP, and 30 medical residents not exposed to waste anesthetic gases (control), matched by age, gender and lifestyle. Venous blood samples will be collected once from all the professionals. The plasma will be separated from the blood and malondialdehyde (MDA) and 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE) will be determined by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and immunoassay ELISA, respectively, as markers of lipid peroxidation. In addition, total antioxidant performance (TAP) will be detected by fluorescence. This knowledge will certainly contribute to understand the possible adverse effects of waste anesthetic gases and contribute to the establishment of strategies aimed for reducing the risks to people exposed, with direct impact on public health. This proposal is part of a larger study that aims to investigate the effect of waste anesthetic gases on the level of oxidative DNA damage and possible chromosomal abnormalities in recently exposed professionals (PhD Thesis).