Whippets, the recreational misuse of nitrous oxide from whipped cream canisters, cause short-lived euphoria, dizziness and hallucinations, potentially leading to addiction and serious health risks like oxygen deprivation and brain damage. Despite its safe medical use in sedation, nitrous oxide’s easy availability has made it popular among teenagers for recreational abuse. Classified as inhalants, whippets differ from other drugs by cutting off oxygen supply to the brain rather than stimulating the brain’s reward center making them highly susceptible to abuse due to their brief high. The recreational use of whippets, involving inhaling nitrous oxide through methods like canisters or balloons, poses significant dangers, including memory loss, coma and even death, due to oxygen deprivation and increased carbon dioxide levels in the brain.
Nitrous oxide is administered through inhalation using various methods such as a face mask, laryngeal mask airway, or an endotracheal tube with concentrations varying based on the medical procedure. For sedation during surgical or dental procedures, it’s combined with oxygen at 30 to 50% and for general anesthesia, it’s used at higher concentrations of 50 to 70% but must be combined with other agents due to its low potency. Special equipment ensures accurate gas mixtures with some devices limiting adjustments in gas proportions. Nitrous oxide facilitates faster induction and emergence from anesthesia by improving blood concentrations of other anesthetics and oxygen, benefiting from its rapid uptake and elimination due to lower lipid solubility. However, its use in specific patient populations, such as those with renal or hepatic impairment, lacks detailed guidelines. In obstetric care, a 50% mix with oxygen is recommended, noting its quick elimination by neonates but caution is advised against combining it with systemic opioids or sedatives due to risks of sedation and maternal hypoxemia. For breastfeeding mothers, it is considered safe to breastfeed once recovered from anesthesia, as nitrous oxide has a short half-life and is not absorbed by the infant.
Adverse effects of nitrous oxide include respiratory depression, particularly when combined with sedatives or opioids; diffusion hypoxia, necessitating 100% oxygen post-use to prevent hypoxia; an increased risk of postoperative nausea and vomiting, controllable with anti-emetics; and rare cases of fever, pulmonary atelectasis, infectious complications, hyperhomocysteinemia leading to megaloblastic anemia and subacute myeloneuropathy, a severe neuropathy. Contraindications are mostly relative, highlighting caution in its use among critically ill patients due to potential neurologic or hematologic consequences, individuals with severe cardiac disease, the first trimester of pregnancy, conditions like pneumothorax or surgeries affecting closed spaces due to increased gas volume risks, severe psychiatric disorders, pulmonary hypertension and procedures involving cautery due to its combustion-supporting properties. These contraindications and adverse effects emphasise the need for careful consideration and management in the use of nitrous oxide in medical settings.
While the exact effects on the body are not fully understood, it is known to diminish sensory perception and alter emotional responses, potentially leading to lightheadedness, hallucinations and delusions. Despite some beliefs that whippets are less harmful, they can lead to serious long-term effects or even death, sharing side effects similar to those of alcohol but with distinct impacts on memory, intelligence and concentration.
Whippets are a nickname that describes small packages of nitrous oxide (laughing gas). Get help from qualified counsellors.What are Whippets? - A Comprehensive Addiction Guide
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