Diagnostic performance of an electronic nose, fractional exhaled nitric oxide, and lung function testing in asthma.
BACKGROUND
Analysis of exhaled breath by biosensors discriminates between patients with asthma and healthy subjects. An electronic nose consists of a chemical sensor array for the detection of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and an algorithm for pattern recognition. We compared the diagnostic performance of a prototype of an electronic nose with lung function tests and fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FENO) in patients with atopic asthma.


METHODS
A cross-sectional study was undertaken in 27 patients with intermittent and persistent mild asthma and in 24 healthy subjects. Two procedures for collecting exhaled breath were followed to study the differences between total and alveolar air. Seven patients with asthma and seven healthy subjects participated in a study with mass spectrometry (MS) fingerprinting as an independent technique for assessing between group discrimination. Classification was based on principal component analysis and a feed-forward neural network.


RESULTS
The best results were obtained when the electronic nose analysis was performed on alveolar air. Diagnostic performance for electronic nose, FENO, and lung function testing was 87.5%, 79.2%, and 70.8%, respectively. The combination of electronic nose and FENO had the highest diagnostic performance for asthma (95.8%). MS fingerprints of VOCs could discriminate between patients with asthma and healthy subjects.


CONCLUSIONS
The electronic nose has a high diagnostic performance that can be increased when combined with FENO. Large studies are now required to definitively establish the diagnostic performance of the electronic nose. Whether this integrated noninvasive approach will translate into an early diagnosis of asthma has to be clarified.


BACKGROUND
EUDRACT https://eudralink.emea.europa.eu; Identifier: 2007-000890-51; and clinicaltrials.gov; Identifier: NCT00819676.
Montuschi
Paolo
P
Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Largo F. Vito, 1, 00168 Rome, Italy. pmontuschi@rm.unicatt.it
Santonico
Marco
M
Mondino
Chiara
C
Pennazza
Giorgio
G
Mantini
Giulia
G
Martinelli
Eugenio
E
Capuano
Rosamaria
R
Ciabattoni
Giovanni
G
Paolesse
Roberto
R
Di Natale
Corrado
C
Barnes
Peter J
PJ
D'Amico
Arnaldo
A
D000328:Adult; D000465:Algorithms; D001249:Asthma / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000503:physiopathology; D015374:Biosensing Techniques; D001944:Breath Tests; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003955:Diagnostic Tests, Routine; D045853:Exhalation; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008168:Lung / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D013058:Mass Spectrometry; D009569:Nitric Oxide / Q000378:metabolism*; D012129:Respiratory Function Tests; D055549:Volatile Organic Compounds
D055549:Volatile Organic Compounds; D009569:Nitric Oxide