Dermatologists Infrequently Use Measures to Filter Cautery Smoke

Compliance with OSHA and other guidelines for protective measures is low.

Despite guidelines issued by the Occupational Health and Safety Agency (OSHA) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) regarding the use of respiratory protection during performance of electrosurgery, compliance is voluntary. To determine how often protective measures are employed, Oganesyan and collaborators surveyed dermatologic surgeons in the U.S. regarding their use of intraoperative interventions to manage smoke arising from electrocautery.

Of the 32% of 997 surgeons responding, 77% used no smoke management techniques, 18% used a smoke evacuator, and 5% used an N95 mask. Regarding the frequency of use of smoke management, 10% used some method at least 25% of the time, and 11% used such a method 75% to 100% of the time.

Comment

This study confirms that use of strategies to remove intraoperative smoke is uncommon in dermatology. Many surgeons use no evacuation or isolation method, and those who do rarely do so consistently. In part, this may be due to the fact that while many toxic compounds have been identified in surgical smoke, it is less well established to what extent these particles induce future disease or disability.

Reviewing Author

Murad Alam, MD, MSCI

Disclosures

Consultant / Advisory boardAmway

Editorial boards JAMA Dermatology; Dermatologic Surgery; Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology; Lasers in Medical Science; Skin Therapy Letter

Leadership positions in professional societies American Academy of Dermatology (Chair, Health Care Finance Committee); American College of Mohs Surgery (Board of Directors); American Society for Dermatologic Surgery (Board of Directors)