title: Saliva as an alternate for blood to measure concentrations of acetone under exposure to isopropanol.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  In occupational medicine, blood concentrations are often measured to judge the internal burden of workers at work-place during exposure to a potentially hazardous substance. However, blood-withdrawals are invasive and can often not be taken at work-place due to hygienic reasons. Sampling of saliva is non-invasive and easy to perform even at workplace. In order to substitute blood analysis, analysis of saliva has to be as specific and sensitive as blood investigations. Therefore acetone-concentrations in blood and in saliva during exposure to isopropanol were compared.
  
  
  METHODS
  18 healthy non-smokers were exposed to 360 ppm isopropanol in an exposure chamber over 4 h. Once an hour during exposure and 30 min after, blood and saliva were sampled. Saliva was collected by a cotton plug over 10 minutes and stored in an airtight closed headspace tube. Concentrations of the metabolite acetone were measured by gas chromatography. -
  
  
  RESULTS
  The concentrations of acetone in blood and saliva rose continually during exposure and dropped after exposure-cessation. High correlations between concentrations of acetone in blood and saliva were found for each individual and the entire group (entire group: r = 0.8568, p <0.0001, y = 0.8374x - 0.4404).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Acetone-measurement in saliva is a non-invasive, easily conductable and reliable method for estimating the internal burden of isopropanol-exposure. Further studies for the standardization and validation are necessary to impose a threshold limit value on work-place isopropanol-exposure.
authors.affiliation: Institut für Arbeits-, Sozial- und Umweltmedizin, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, Obere Zahlbacher Str. 67, D-55131 Mainz, Germany. rose@mail.uni-mainz.de
authors.forename: D M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Rose
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Muttray
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Mayer-Popken
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Jung
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Konietzko
mesh_terms: D019840:2-Propanol / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects; D000096:Acetone / Q000097:blood* / Q000378:metabolism*; D015386:Hazardous Substances / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D019055:No-Observed-Adverse-Effect Level; D016273:Occupational Exposure; D012463:Saliva / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D015386:Hazardous Substances; D000096:Acetone; D019840:2-Propanol