Differential ion mobility spectroscopy: non-invasive real-time diagnostics and therapy control in metabolic diseases.

BACKGROUND: Over the last few years, differential ion mobility spectroscopy (DMS) has become an important tool in medical research. There are attempts to find markers for specific diseases in exhaled air, using this technology as a non-invasive early diagnosis. OBJECTIVE: In the present research, exhaled air from 78 patients with known diagnosis and 39 control persons were tested with a DMS system from Sionex. RESULTS: Bronchial asthma showed a pattern of 6 characteristic points in a discriminant analysis. Patients with diagnosed hypertension showed a characteristic pattern with 4 points, hypothyroidism 2 points; increased LDL cholesterol 3 points, and type II diabetics treated with insulin 4 spots. No significant differences with respect to the control group were found in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients. The DMS pattern in the tested asthmatics showed a partial change depending on different medications used. CONCLUSION: Differential ion mobility spectroscopy offers promise as a helpful diagnostic tool.

Elimination of drugs by the new polyamide hemofilter FH77H during various in vitro conditions.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Multiple organ failure alters the dosage of drugs during hemofiltration. To separate factors, we utilized in vitro hemofiltration to investigate different blood flows, protein concentrations and intracellular drug partition with the FH77H polyamide membrane. METHODS: One liter of warm heparinized fresh human blood was hemofiltrated in two series: (1) with digoxin, netilmycin, phenobarbital, ceftriaxone and teicoplanin, and (2) with amikacin, theophylline, ceftazidim, phenytoin and vancomycin and, in addition, with cell-free fresh frozen plasma. RESULTS: The increased volumes of distribution of aminoglycosides and theophylline were a combined result of partition into cells and adsorption into the filter membrane. The deviations of drug sieving from predicted values were due to different affinities of the drugs on whole blood binding sites. CONCLUSION: The in vitro composition of drugs and blood improved the detection of factors that influence drug elimination during hemofiltration. The FH77H polyamide hemofilter facilitates more precise predictions of drug dosages by low adsorption rates to the membrane.