Relationship between skin acetone and blood beta-hydroxybutyrate concentrations in diabetes.
BACKGROUND
Acetone is emitted from the skin and acetone concentrations correlate with blood beta-hydroxybutyrate.


METHODS
Skin acetone concentrations of 63 patients with diabetes and 32 control subjects were measured by cold trapping followed by gas chromatography.


RESULTS
Skin acetone concentrations of patients with diabetes (188+/-17 ppb; mean+/-SE) were significantly higher than those of the control subjects (87+/-10 ppb, p<0.01). There was no significant difference in skin acetone concentrations among patients with diabetes with regard to mode of treatment. Skin acetone concentrations were correlated with blood beta-hydroxybutyrate (r=0.669, p<0.01), blood glucose (r=0.608, p<0.01), and HbA1c (r=0.292, p<0.05) in patients with diabetes. Skin acetone concentration was high (940 ppb) in a patient with diabetic ketoacidosis, and it fell to 80 ppb after insulin therapy.


CONCLUSIONS
Measurement of skin acetone can be used as a screening test for ketoacidosis provided the analytical methods and tools become simpler. Moreover, it could become a marker of diabetic control and of ketone production in diabetes and other ketogenic conditions.
Yamane
Norio
N
Research Center of Health, Physical Fitness and Sports, Nagoya University, Furo-cho, Chikusa-ku, Nagoya 464-8601, Japan.
Tsuda
Takao
T
Nose
Kazutoshi
K
Yamamoto
Akiko
A
Ishiguro
Hiroshi
H
Kondo
Takaharu
T
D020155:3-Hydroxybutyric Acid / Q000097:blood*; D000096:Acetone / Q000378:metabolism*; D000368:Aged; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000097:blood / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged
D000096:Acetone; D020155:3-Hydroxybutyric Acid