Newer anesthesia gas machines contain plastic and elastomeric components that absorb volatile anesthetics and then release residual vapor during subsequent anesthetic procedures. The anesthesia gas machine requires high flows and a lengthy time period to remove most of the vapor before the machine can be used for a patient that cannot tolerate breathing trace amounts of volatile anesthetic vapor. The Vapor-Clean filters absorb the trace amounts of isoflurane, sevoflurane and desflurane so that anesthetic vapors do not reach the patient.
Placement of the Vapor-Clean filter canisters on the anesthesia machine allows the machine to be vapor-free (less than 5 parts per million of vapor) within 90 seconds.