On-line breath analysis with PTR-TOF.

We report on on-line breath gas analysis with a new type of analytical instrument, which represents the next generation of proton-transfer-reaction mass spectrometers. This time-of-flight mass spectrometer in combination with the soft proton-transfer-reaction ionization (PTR-TOF) offers numerous advantages for the sensitive detection of volatile organic compounds and overcomes several limitations. First, a time-of-flight instrument allows for a measurement of a complete mass spectrum within a fraction of a second.

Buffered end-tidal (BET) sampling-a novel method for real-time breath-gas analysis.

We present a novel method for real-time breath-gas analysis using mass-spectrometric techniques: buffered end-tidal (BET) on-line sampling. BET has several advantages over conventional direct on-line sampling where the subject inhales and exhales through a sampling tube. In our approach, a single exhalation is administered through a tailored tube in which the end-tidal fraction of the breath-gas sample is buffered.