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Chapter 14 Surgical Room Skills 255

tube. Use your hand to spread the disinfectant around on
the outside of the tube and a small bristle brush to clean
the inside. Rinse it thoroughly with warm water and hang
to dry, as if put away wet they can develop mold inside of
the tube. Do not put fluid down the small air inflation
tube as that will wreck the tube and cuff. The endotra-
cheal tubes not used can be put back into storage. They
are usually separated by size for easy and quick access so
make sure you put them away properly. If there is a doubt
as to what tube was used, disinfect them all!

Gas Anesthesia Machine

The gas anesthetic machines are usually assigned to a
veterinary technician for maintenance. However, you
may be asked to assist with its care. There are parts that
can be checked and restocked daily and parts that can be
cleaned daily by a veterinary assistant. Figure 14.7 shows
the soda lime canister filled with soda lime crystals.
Dr. Donald Sawyer recommends “that at a minimum
these must be replaced every two weeks even if not used.

FIGURE 14.8 Isoflurane vaporizer’s fill window (A) and fill spout (B).

If the clinic does more than five surgeries a week and/or
if you have a large percentage of dog surgeries over 80 lb
the crystals should be changed daily” (Sawyer 2016). The
FIGURE 14.6 Syringe connected to endotracheal tube cuff adapter.
canister is removed and the spent crystals are dumped
into the trash can. Place a cotton ball in the delivery hole
and add crystals up to the fill line on the side of the can-
ister. Put the canister back onto the machine, making
sure it is seated into the holder before tightening the
knobs or flipping the clamps that make it airtight. Take
Release the trash with the spent crystal out to the dumpster as
clips soon as possible.
Figure 14.8 shows the isoflurane vaporizer’s fill
window (A) and fill spout (B). Isoflurane is the gas anes-
thesic used most commonly in veterinary practice. It
comes in a liquid form that aerosolizes when exposed to
oxygen. Personal protective equipment (PPE) required
is a respirator, gloves, and goggles as this is a noxious
chemical which can cause headaches if exposed to it for
a long period of time. Fill only to the fill line, otherwise
it will over run the chamber and dump onto the floor. It
Canister
will take wax off and it is dangerous to breath the spilled
isoflurane. Refer to the chemical waste section in
Chapter 4 for cleaning up a hazardous chemical spill.
Another item that the veterinary assistant may be
asked to monitor it is the f/air canister (Figure 14.9).
This canister traps waste gas if no evacuation disposal
FIGURE 14.7 Soda lime canister. system is available. This canister must be changed out