Experimental Studies in Acute Retroperitoneal Carbon Dioxide Insufflation

Carbon dioxide gas as a venous contrast agent to guide upper-arm insertion of central venous catheters

“…CO2 has been used for the diagnosis of pericardia/disease with an antecubital injection of 50 or 60 ml of the gas over a 2-3-sec interval [10]. A canine study [11] revealed that a right atrial bolus of CO2 usually disappeared within 15-30 seconds after injection. It was also demonstrated that intravenous injections of CO2 at a rate of 100 ml/min for a total volume of 10,000 ml caused no demonstrable adverse effects in dogs.…”

Carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) digital subtraction angiography: 26-year experience at the University of Florida

“…Before CO 2 was used in the 1950 s for pericardial effusion, multiple animal studies were obtained, which demonstrated only minimal transient changes in PCO 2 , PO 2 , blood pH, etc., even with large doses [10,24,25]. We recently have repeated these experiments because of recent interest in CO 2 venography.…”

“…This is particularly helpful during long, complex interventional cases where a large amount of contrast agent may be required. In canines, 100 cc of CO 2 can be injected every minute for hours without adverse effects [24]. In patients, if several minutes are allowed between injections, there is no maximum total dose of CO 2 .…”