Evaluation and comparison of sensitivity of alcohol biomarkers PEth, EtG and EtPa in civil cases in England 2022–2023

Abstract

This study details trends in direct alcohol biomarker concentrations from civil cases within the United Kingdom (UK). Our subject cohort in this study related to family law litigation, where an individual was subject to an alcohol monitoring order by the court. This monitoring was conducted by quantification of alcohol biomarkers Phosphatidlyethanol (PEth) in dried blood spots (DBS) and Ethyl Glucuronide (EtG) and Ethyl Palmitate (EtPa) from hair segments. In total 298 PEth cases predominantly from the South East of England during the period July 2022 to August 2023 were analysed for alcohol biomarkers in DBS and hair. Subjects alcohol intake was classified as abstinence/low alcohol consumption, moderate or excessive alcohol consumption, based on a combination of Society for Hair Testing and PEth Net guidelines. Our results indicate that 33 % of PEth concentrations were consistent with excessive alcohol use (>200 ng/mL DBS), with 36 % consistent with social or moderate alcohol use (20–200 ng/mL DBS). In relation to EtG and EtPa 23 % and 31 % of subjects were classified as excessive alcohol users respectively. This study indicates that DBS sampling of PEth is a more sensitive predictor of alcohol use, in particular, at differentiating between moderate and excessive alcohol use compared to EtG and EtPa testing in hair. The authors suggest that increased frequency in the sampling of PEth in DBS (multiple occasions per month) may provide a more accurate assessment and simplification of the interpretation criteria of alcohol patterns rather than the combined hair testing and DBS sampling that are typically requested by UK courts.