Senator says surgical smoke from OR patients is harmful. Bill requires evacuation system

Published: April 19, 2023

By: Caden Lim, LSU Manship School News Service

BATON ROUGE – The Senate Committee on Health and Welfare advanced a bill Tuesday to require Louisiana operating rooms to have equipment to remove harmful surgical smoke plumes.

The bill’s author, Sen. Gerald Boudreaux, D-Lafayette, said operating-room patients emit “surgical smoke plume,” or actual smoke, when treated with a heat-generating device. He said the smoke “is prevalent in operating rooms across the state” and is extremely harmful if inhaled.

Boudreaux said “evacuation system” refers to devices that filter and remove the chemicals in the smoke.

Committee members voiced no resistance in advancing the bill, Senate Bill 29. It will need further legislative approvals to become law.

Read more at Shreveport Times