5Methods and functions: Breath tests
Section snippets
Principle
The technique of hydrogen breath tests is based on the principle that there is no human hydrogen gas production, but hydrogen is produced by intestinal bacteria when ingested carbohydrates escape complete absorption in the small intestine. Usually, hydrogen producing bacteria only colonise the colon. A fixed fraction of this colonic hydrogen diffuses into the bloodstream and is exhaled by the lungs where it can be analysed in breath (Fig. 1).
This principle can be applied to control the
13C-breath tests
13C-breath tests non-invasively indicate significant changes in metabolism due to a specific disease or the lack of a specific enzyme. The striking advantages of the 13C-breath test are that they are non-invasive, non-radioactive, safe, simple, and effective. The simplicity and non-invasiveness of the 13C-breath test makes it very applicable in a clinical setting. The breath tests can also be used to monitor disease severity in further follow-up or for therapy control testing the efficacy of
Summary
If pitfalls and limitations are considered breath test are valuable and accurate, but often underutilised modes of investigation for various gastrointestinal disorders. They are non-invasive and safe and exploit normal physiological principles. Modifications of the test meal, the substrate dose, the test performance and the data analysis can have a marked influence on the breath test results. Therefore, a general agreement on standard test protocols and evaluation of normal ranges is highly
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