Electrocautery knife smoke is mutagenic, unpleasant, and possibly a health hazard to operating room personnel. Traditional smoke removal methods have been largely ineffective during procedures that generate significant smoke with electrocautery use. A commercial laser smoke evacuation and filtration unit, available in most hospital operating rooms today, has proven highly effective in rapidly eliminating essentially all visible electrocautery knife smoke and odor during breast reductions and other "high smoke" procedures.
