Chest
Clinical InvestigationsClinical Implications of the Ethane in Exhaled Breath in Patients With Acute Paraquat Intoxication
Section snippets
Materials and Methods
This study was designed to compare the exEth obtained 24 h after paraquat ingestion and to determine the relationship between that exEth and the clinical outcome, including lung injury as assessed by high-resolution CT (HRCT) and exposure variables.
Results
Even though the level of exEth was higher in the nonsurvivor group than in the survivor group, it is neither an independent predictor of survival nor a specific marker of lung injury. The subjects (71.4% female; mean age, 41.3 years; SD, 13.7) were admitted to the ED on average 12.5 h (SD, 13.1) after a mean paraquat ingestion of 46.7 mL. All subjects presented a positive urine paraquat test result. Plasma paraquat concentrations ranged from 0.10 to 5.10 μg/dL, and the mean level of exEth was
Discussion
The results indicate that even though the level of exEth was higher in the nonsurvivor group than in the survivor group, it is neither an independent predictor of survival nor a specific marker of lung injury in patients with acute paraquat poisoning. The major cause of death from paraquat poisoning is respiratory failure due to oxidative insult to the alveolar epithelium.16 It would therefore be very useful to identify markers that indicate the progress of lung injury in paraquat intoxication.
References (18)
- et al.
The determination of paraquat (1,1′-dimethyl-4,4′-bipyridylium cation) in urine
Clin Chim Acta
(1971) - et al.
Associations between laboratory parameters and outcome of paraquat poisoning
Toxicol Lett
(2000) - et al.
Clinical application of breath biomarkers of oxidative stress status
Free Radic Biol Med
(1999) - et al.
Technology development in breath microanalysis for clinical diagnosis
J Lab Clin Med
(1999) Method for the collection and assay of volatile organic compounds in breath
Anal Biochem
(1997)- et al.
Development of a method to monitor low molecular mass hydrocarbons in exhaled breath of man: preliminary evaluation of its interest for detecting a lipoperoxidation processin vivo
Clin Chim Acta
(1987) - et al.
Pentane clearance from inspired air by the rat: dependence on the liver
Gastroenterology
(1983) Role of antioxidants in paraquat toxicity
Toxicology
(2002)- et al.
Breath ethane: a specific indicator of free-radical-mediated lipid peroxidation following reperfusion of the ischemic liver
Free Radic Biol Med
(1992)
Cited by (11)
Comparison between kidney and continuous plasma perfusion for paraquat elimination
2014, American Journal of the Medical SciencesMetabolitic profiling of amino acids in paraquat-induced acute kidney injury
2019, Clinical and Experimental NephrologyEffect of MDR1 gene polymorphisms on mortality in paraquat intoxicated patients
2016, Scientific ReportsPneumomediastinum predicts early mortality in acute paraquat poisoning
2015, Clinical Toxicology
This study was supported by a grant from Syngenta Korea.
Reproduction of this article is prohibited without written permission from the American College of Chest Physicians (www.chestjournal.org/misc/reprints.shtml).