Prescription Medications

Anesthesiologists Vulnerable to Drug Abuse

Anesthesiologists who sit near a patient's head during surgery are subject to secondhand exposure to anesthetic drugs exhaled by the patient, explained Dr. Mark Gold, a distinguished professor with UF's McKnight Brain Institute.

Gold said further studies and blood sampling are needed to determine if anesthesiologists really do suffer problems from inhaling trace amounts of anesthetic drugs in much the way that people's health can be harmed by secondhand smoke.

Anesthesiologists are up to four times more likely to be treated for drug addiction than other doctors, Gold said.