ABSTRACT
The study objective was to compare the ethanol concentrations [end expiratory] with serial serum sodium estimations and volumetric analysis of irrigatant balance. Thirty-eight male patients undergoing elective transurethral resection of prostate [TURP] with an anesthetic risk classification not higher than ASA II were chosen. A simple, reliable method to detect absorption of irrigating fluid during transurethral resection of prostate [TURP] was used to tag irrigating fluid with 1% ethanol and monitor expiratory breath ethanol concentrations. This method correlated well with other existing methods of absorption monitoring in 38 anesthetized patients. Ethanol [1%] tagging did not alter the optical quality of the irrigating fluid and is harmless to the patients. The technique is noninvasive, repeatable, cheap and gives instant results. It can be used in anesthetized or awake patients and can detect absorption of as little as 100-150 ml in any 10-minute period