Breath acetone: trends in techniques and its potential clinical applications in diabetes management

Human exhaled gases contain thousands of trace amounts of trace volatile organic compounds (VOCs), some of which are endogenous substance and can be detected as potential biomarkers for disease. Acetone, the second highest VOCs in human exhaled gases, has been widely used in non-invasive diagnosis and monitoring of diabetes. At present, more than 30 independent studies have been undertaken on the range of breath acetone concentration and its influencing factors, and the quantitative relationship between blood glucose and glycosylated hemoglobin in diabetic patients. However, there are still many challenges in the application of breath acetone as a clinical regulatory parameter for diabetes. In this paper, the research status and progress in the breath acetone and analysis method were reviewed, and the existing problems in diabetes diagnosis and monitoring were discussed. Besides, the future development prospects were analyzed with the present technical level. Key words: Diabetes; Acetone; Breath analysis; Biomarkers; Cavity ring-down spectroscopy