Development of a Breath Alcohol Analyzer for Use on Patients in Emergency Care

Abstract

The quantification of breath alcohol concentration is considered important input in medical diagnosis and triage at emergency medical care. In many severe emergency cases, for example head injuries, stroke, heart attack, diabetes, or psychological illness, the medical condition of the patient can be mistaken for alcohol intoxication. In cases like these, quantification of the alcohol concentration would facilitate and speed up the diagnostic procedure. However, the use of breath analyzers in medical care is limited as the state-of-the-art devices require active involvement of the patient, and expiratory volume and flow incompatible with patients respiratory function. This paper presents a prototype of a handheld breath analyzer based on infrared spectroscopy which does not require active involvement from the patient and also provides direct feedback on the quality of the breath test by measurement of the expired PCO₂.