It has been estimated that only one in ten to one in one hundred operating room fires is reported. The exact incidence is therefore unknown. By “guesstimate,” there are probably between one hundred and two hundred operating room fires in the United States per year, as gleaned from FDA reports and ECRI investigations. Approximately 20% of those reported fires result in serious patient injury. The one or two deaths per year are usually secondary to airway fire. Most operating room fires are associated with an oxygen enriched atmosphere which may also include nitrous oxide.