Other Medical Applications Using Gas Analyzers

Gas analyzers are used for anesthetic research with NjO, diethyl ether, halothane (CFjCHClBr), and chloroform (Hill and Powell, 1968). Carbon monoxide analyzers 

Various conventional medical applications for infrared gas analyzers have been described in the literature continuous analysis of COj in respired air (Domhorst et a/., 1953) alveolar CO2 measurement (Collier et al., 1955) measurement of CO2 in respired gas mixtures (Cullen et al., 1956) measurement of CO2 in respired gases containing cyclopropane and ether (Linde and Lurie, 1959) and application to anesthesia and respiratory physiology (Powell, 1965). 

Coburn (1964) has described an infrared method for the measurement of blood carboxyhemoglobin. Bound CO is liberated by treating a hemolyzed blood solution with acid ferricyanide, extracted by means of any oxygen washout technique, collected in a tonometer, and measured in an infrared CO meter. The result is compared with that of a known gas standard containing 0.007% CO. Oxygen is used as the baseline gas. The method is highly specific for CO and can detect 0.(X)6 ml of CO per 1(X) ml blood, or approximately + 0.02 % carboxyhemoglobin. 

Gimeno Ortega et al. (1966) have adapted an infrared analyzer for the determination of carbon dioxide content of blood. They tested the apparatus with various carbon dioxide tensions and compared the results with those obtained with the conventional Van Slyke-Neill technique. The reproducibility of the infrared method was found to be better than the Van Slyke-Neill method under comparable operating conditions. A complete infrared analysis takes only 5 min, but the main disadvantage of the method is its limitation to carbon dioxide. 

Many examples of biological applications of the infrared gas analyzer have been mentioned by Hill and Powell (1968). Carbon dioxide production by locusts has been studied by Hamilton (1959, 1964). Romijn and Lokhorst (1961) examined expired air of a hen for CO2 in studying the hen s heat-regulating mechanism. The CO2 resulting from the combustion of small amounts of organic carbon in fresh and saline water has been measured by Montgomery and Thom (1962). 

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