The misuse of nitrous oxide has made it the leading cause of emergency admissions to neurology wards, and it can be fatal.
A prominent neurologist has warned that misusing nitrous oxide can pose life-threatening hazards as Britain prepares to celebrate the new year.
Laughing gas is the second most often abused drug among 16- to 24-year-olds in England, behind cannabis.
Dr. David Nicholl, clinical lead of neurology at Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust, told: “I believe it’s inappropriate to refer to it as laughing gas because it implies it’s a joke.”
It is a medicine that is used as an anesthetic, but only with 50% oxygen in a monitored atmosphere with health professionals who are familiar with dosages.
Acute exposure to gas has been associated with anemia, nerve damage, and fertility problems.
According to Dr. Nicholl, substance abuse is currently the leading cause of emergency admissions to the neurology ward.
“Patients enter the hospital with difficulties walking, tingling in the hands and feet, slurred speech, and, less frequently, seizures.
“I’ve also spoken with an ophthalmology colleague who saw a blind patient, but this was due to hypoxia caused by inhaling nitrous oxide,” he cautioned.
He stated that he had witnessed people carrying canisters weighing up to 3,9 kilograms.
“This would kill you if you took it all at once,” he remarked.
Liam Cullen, a 33-year-old football coach, claims he was addicted to nitrous oxide in his twenties.
He told that he may spend anywhere between 12 and 18 hours a day working on balloons.
“It altered my demeanor; I became short-tempered. I am typically sociable and someone whom others enjoy being around. But when I was under the influence of nitrous oxide, I was unpleasant to be around.”
I was unable to feel my legs
Liam would consume 600 canisters every day, and he claims that this led to his frequent hospitalizations.
“There were days when I experienced pins and needles so terrible that I absolutely couldn’t go to work. I was unable to feel my legs or the toes on my feet.”
New data from the Queen Mary University-led study project N2O Know The Risks revealed that while 91% of respondents had encountered nitrous oxide canisters before, only 41% recognized what they were.
And 97% of those surveyed were unaware that inhaling nitrous oxide might cause spinal cord injury.
