Citation

Kuehnholz B, Bilzer N. Proc. Int. Counc. Alcohol Drugs Traffic Safety Conf. 1981; 1981: 581-593.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1981, The author(s) and the Council, Publisher International Council on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Blood alcohol levels can only be estimated from breath measurements when the blood-breath distribution coefficient of alcohol is determined and reproducible. The alcohol distribution between the blood and the total fluid mass of any tissue has to be constant and in this case the ethanol content of the lung tissue fluid will always be in virtual equilibrium with the blood. In a previous study with 55 guinea pigs, an investigation was made of the alcohol distribution in the watery portion of the stomach contents, blood and the individual organs after oral administering of alcohol. It was found that, even after the onset of diffusion equilibrium, the water-alcohol concentration in tissue and especially in lung was clearly lower than the corresponding water-alcohol concentration in blood (blutalkohol 16, 473, 1979). Postmortem determinations of ethanol and water concentrations in tissues and body fluids demonstrated similar results (blutalkohol 16, 481, 1979). The present study is chiefly concerned in determining the relation between arterial, venous and lung tissue alcohol levels at various times during and after infusion of ethanol at different rates. It will be demonstrated that the ethanol content in lung tissue in the breath cannot always be compared with the ethanol content of more commonly taken venous samples. (TRRL)