EMT's / Paramedics are starting to include self-administered nitrous in their kits:
"The advanced EMTs and paramedics primarily use nitrous oxide for injuries to extremities, such as broken bones and sprains in the arms and legs. It can’t be used for abdominal pain, head injuries, collapsed lungs or after a patient has been given opiates.
To be eligible for nitrous oxide, a patient must be alert enough to administer the gas him or herself, Brinkman said.
Brinkman says providers assess the patient’s pain level before deciding whether using nitrous oxide makes sense.
He’s seen the gas bring a patient’s pain from a self-reported eight to 10 on a scale of one to 10 to a four or a six.
“It takes enough of the edge off to get through transport,” Brinkman said, and unlike opiates, its effects last only minutes past the last inhalation."
Of course, per usual, the FDA has driven up the costs and availability of this system.
"Right now, only one of Stowe EMS’ two ambulances is outfitted with nitrous oxide; Brinkman says the department plans to buy another system in the fiscal year that starts July 1.
Part of the holdup was finding an approved medical gas supplier. There’s no supplier nearby; the closest Food and Drug Administration-approved supplier to Stowe is in Schenectady, N.Y., nearly a four-hour drive away, so Brinkman’s department bought a rotation of tanks, enough to cover any gaps while the empties are out for a refill. Each tank costs $100 to buy, custom-made by the gas supplier, but only around $14 to fill with just over a pound of nitrous oxide gas."
https://www.stowetoday.com/stowe_reporter/news/local_news/stowe-ems-nitrous-oxide-efforts-influence-other-departments/article_4a81e74a-5780-11e7-b202-fbcfd2b53ccc.html
"The advanced EMTs and paramedics primarily use nitrous oxide for injuries to extremities, such as broken bones and sprains in the arms and legs. It can’t be used for abdominal pain, head injuries, collapsed lungs or after a patient has been given opiates.
To be eligible for nitrous oxide, a patient must be alert enough to administer the gas him or herself, Brinkman said.
Brinkman says providers assess the patient’s pain level before deciding whether using nitrous oxide makes sense.
He’s seen the gas bring a patient’s pain from a self-reported eight to 10 on a scale of one to 10 to a four or a six.
“It takes enough of the edge off to get through transport,” Brinkman said, and unlike opiates, its effects last only minutes past the last inhalation."
Of course, per usual, the FDA has driven up the costs and availability of this system.
"Right now, only one of Stowe EMS’ two ambulances is outfitted with nitrous oxide; Brinkman says the department plans to buy another system in the fiscal year that starts July 1.
Part of the holdup was finding an approved medical gas supplier. There’s no supplier nearby; the closest Food and Drug Administration-approved supplier to Stowe is in Schenectady, N.Y., nearly a four-hour drive away, so Brinkman’s department bought a rotation of tanks, enough to cover any gaps while the empties are out for a refill. Each tank costs $100 to buy, custom-made by the gas supplier, but only around $14 to fill with just over a pound of nitrous oxide gas."
https://www.stowetoday.com/stowe_reporter/news/local_news/stowe-ems-nitrous-oxide-efforts-influence-other-departments/article_4a81e74a-5780-11e7-b202-fbcfd2b53ccc.html