Marijuana, nitrous oxide, and other inhaled drugs

Abstract

Inhalation of many substances has been part of civilization for thousands of years, for both pleasure and medicinal reasons. Abuse of this practice has become indigenous to our society. While tobacco is probably the most abused inhalant, many other agents have been sniffed and inhaled through the respiratory tract by all segments of our population. In addition to agents produced specifically for the purpose of recreational inhalation, there exist a number of readily obtained and easily abused volatile compounds with the potential to complicate an anesthetic procedure.