Anaesthetic gases come first: desflurane has a warming potential 2,540 times higher than CO2 and sevoflurane 130 times, while injected propofol is several orders of magnitude lower. Dosage form also matters: intravenous paracetamol emits 310 to 628 gCO2e per 1 g dose, versus 38 gCO2e orally, because of packaging, infusion sets and the cold chain. Price is a poor indicator, as a monetary ratio overestimates expensive medicines and underestimates high-volume generics.
Read the source article: Carbon footprint of medicines: Ecovamed and carbon scores