title: Changes in the concentration of breath ammonia in response to exercise: a preliminary investigation.
abstract: Breath ammonia has proven to be a difficult compound to measure accurately. The goal of this study was to evaluate the effects that the physiological intervention, exercise, had on the levels of breath ammonia. The effects of vigorous exercise (4000 m indoor row) in 13 participants were studied and increases in breath ammonia were observed in all participants. Mean pre-exercise concentrations of ammonia were 670 pmol ml(-1) CO2 (SD, 446) and these concentrations increased to post-exercise maxima of 1499 pmol ml(-1) CO2 (SD, 730), p < 0.0001. The mean increase in ammonia concentrations from pre-exercise to maximum achieved in conditioned (1362 pmol ml(-1) CO2) versus non-conditioned rowers (591 pmol ml(-1) CO2) were found to be statistically different, p = 0.029. Taken together, these results demonstrate our ability to repeatedly measure the influence of exercise on the concentration of breath ammonia.
authors.affiliation: Solga Gastroenterology, Bethlehem, PA, USA. St. Luke's University Hospital/Temple School of Medicine, Bethlehem, PA, USA. School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA.
authors.forename: Steven F
authors.initials: SF
authors.lastname: Solga
authors.forename: Matthew
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mudalel
authors.forename: Lisa A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Spacek
authors.forename: Rafal
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Lewicki
authors.forename: Frank K
authors.initials: FK
authors.lastname: Tittel
authors.forename: Claudio
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Loccioni
authors.forename: Adolfo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Russo
authors.forename: Alessandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ragnoni
authors.forename: Terence H
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Risby
mesh_terms: D000641:Ammonia / Q000032:analysis*; D001944:Breath Tests / Q000379:methods*; D002245:Carbon Dioxide / Q000378:metabolism; D003710:Demography; D015444:Exercise / Q000502:physiology*; D045853:Exhalation; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011674:Pulse; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D002245:Carbon Dioxide; D000641:Ammonia