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Monitors designed to simultaneously and continuously sample, measure, and display the concentrations of several anesthetic gases, such as nitrogen oxide (N2O), and halogenated agents (e.g., halothane, enflurane, and isoflurane) administered to a patient during surgical procedures using general anesthesia. Some monitors are also capable of determining the concentrations of the anesthetic gases using the principle that different gases absorb infrared light (IR) at different wavelengths (IR spectrometry). Other monitors use the change of resonant frequency in a quartz crystal as its mass increases when a special coating absorbs the anesthetic agent. Still other monitors combine different techniques to perform the measurements. Anesthetic gas monitors are used during anesthetic administration to ensure that appropriate levels of these agents are administered to patients.
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