New research presented by Dr. Mohamed Fayed at the recent annual conference of the American Society of Anesthesiologists claims that delivering one hour of surgical anesthesia to a patient is the equivalent of driving a car 470 miles in terms of "greenhouse gas" emissions.

In order to save the planet from global warming, Fayed stated, "lowering the flow of anesthetic gas" to patients is critical. Sure, they will be in a lot more pain, but at least Fayed will no longer have to worry about the polar ice caps melting and possibly flooding his yard.

"Global warming is affecting our daily life more and more, and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions has become crucial," Fayed is quoted as saying.

"No matter how small each effect is, it will add up. As anesthesiologists, we can contribute significantly to this cause by making little changes in our daily practice – such as lowering the flow of anesthetic gas – without affecting patient care."

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According to Fayed, patient care will not suffer in any way by reducing the use of anesthesia during surgery. Patients need to suffer through the pain, he suggested, because up to 0.1 percent of the world's carbon emissions come from anesthesia – and he considers this to be too high.