[The alcohol method for determining total body water: comparison with heavy water (D2O)].
The determination of Total Body Water (TBW) by means of even dilution of the perorally administered indicator substance ethanol in the TBW-space is successful with a precision which is in direct comparison with other dilution-indicators, even superior that of D2O, which can be considered as a standard indicator substance for TBW. Thus, also indirectly, another proof emerges for the fact that ethanol dissolves exclusively in the body water. Applying the alcohol-method shows that even small changes of a few hundred milliliters of the body water volume, as they appear during the menstruation cycle, are detectable. Even in patients with a terminal renal failure and the risk of pathological water retention of several liters, there is no criterion which might exclude the TBW-determination by means of the dilution of slight quantities of ethanol. Finally, considering the possibility to determine the blood alcohol concentration (after a complete distribution in the TBW-space) with sufficient precision using a breath ethanol analyzer of the latest generation, the possibility emerges to carry out TBW-determination in patients and volunteers essentially noninvasive.
Abteilung Rechtsmedizin, Christian-Albrechts-Universität, Kiel, Deutschland.
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Endres
D001834:Body Water / Q000502:physiology*; D003903:Deuterium; D000431:Ethanol; D006801:Humans; D007201:Indicator Dilution Techniques; D012016:Reference Values; D014882:Water-Electrolyte Balance / Q000502:physiology
D000431:Ethanol; D003903:Deuterium
Die Alkoholmethode zur Bestimmung des Gesamtkörperwassers: Vergleich mit Schwerem Wasser (D2O).