*5.2.3 Closed cabin atmospheres*

A spacecraft offers a tightly sealed environment. Medical procedures requiring the use of oxygen would risk oxygen enrichment in the closed cabin atmosphere, increasing the risk of explosion and fire. Use of a closed ventilation circuit limits the dumping of oxygen in the cabin. Volatile anaesthetics cannot be used in such an environment, as a gas leak can contaminate the on-board closed loop environment and therefore general anaesthesia must be provided by the technique of total intravenous anaesthesia (TIVA) [16, 17, 38]. Xenon may find utility as an anaesthetic gas in such space operations [17].
