
A new,
portable breath analyzer that could someday help doctors diagnose diabetes
noninvasively in the office has been developed. The report appears in the ACS
journal Analytical Chemistry.
Many studies
examining the hallmarks of diabetes in exhaled breath have shown that elevated
levels of acetone are strongly linked to diabetes. Detecting the concentrations
of any given substance in breath in a simple way, however, is a major
challenge.
Breath contains a complex mix of compounds, including water, carbon dioxide and methane that can throw results off. Mass spectrometry can do the job, but it's not very practical for point-of-care testing. Robert Peverall and colleagues wanted to fill that void.
The measurements were a close match and covered a wide range of concentrations, including those that would suggest a patient has undiagnosed type-1 diabetes, or has problems controlling their blood glucose. Adding to the practicality of the device, the researchers say it could be re-used many times.
Source: Eurekalert
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