Nicholas J Wald, Marianne Idle, Jillian Boreham,and Alan Bailey
From ICRF Cancer Epidemiology and Clinical Trials Unit, Radcliffe Infirmary, Oxford, and BUPA Medical Centre, London
ABSTRACT Carboxyhaemoglobin (COHb)levels were studies in 11,249 men. The distribution among the 2,613 men who smoked cigarettes was well separated from that in 6,441 non-smokers (including ex-smokers). The distribution for 2005 cigar and pipe smokers was intermediated, though some of the highest COHb levels occurred in cigar smokers. Using a COHb cut-off level of 2%, 81% of cigarette smokers, 35% of cigar and pipe smokers, and 1-0% of non-smokers had raised COHB levels. In a subsidiary experiment, alveolar air samples were collected from 162 smokers and 25 non-smokers using a simple breath sampling technique. Carbon monoxide concentrations in alveolar breath were highly correlated with COHb levels (r = 0.97) indicating that COHb levels can be estimated reliably by measuring the concentration of carbon monoxide in breath. Alveolar carbon monoxide measurement is thus a simple method of estimating whether a person is likely to be a smoker.
The level of carboxyhaemoglobin (COHb) in the blood has been shown to be a useful marker of tobacco smoke absorption, 1-6 and for this reason there are epidemiological and clinical reasons for performing COHb measurements. The precise distributions of COHb levels in smokers and non-smokers, and the extent to which they overlap, are not well known. We therefore investigated the measurement of carbon monoxide (CO) in alveolar breath using a portable analyzer, as an indirect measure of the COHb level whichavoids the inconvenience of taking blood samples.
Table 1 shows the number of men according to smoking category, together with the definitions used when classifying smoking habits.
It is known that alcohol vapor can affect the response of the Ecolyser and this was confirmed. Subjects were asked if they had drunk alcohol on the day they were seen and were excluded if they had done so.
The distributions of COHb levels from lifelong non-smokers and ex-smokers were very similar, although a slightly higher proportion of ex-smokers had COHB levels greater than or equal to 2.0% (1.2% and 0.7% of ex-smokers and lifelong non-smokers respectively), suggesting that men claiming to be ex-smokers were more likely to have smoked within a day or so of the test than men claiming to be lifelong non-smokers. For example, the only four “non-smokers” with COHb levels greater than 5.0% were ex-smokers, two of whom reported having smoked within 24 hours of the test!
Figure 1 shows the cumulative COHb distributions for men who smoked cigarettes only, pipes only, cigars only, and non-smokers. The COHb levels of pipe and cigar smokers were similar and, in general, closer to the non-smoker levels than to those of the cigarette smokers, although 5% of cigar smokers with the highest COHb levels had values very similar to those of the 5% of cigarette smokers with the highest levels.
Table 3 shows the percentage of non-smokers, cigarette smokers (including those who also smoked pipes and /or cigars), and the remaining pipe and/or cigar smokers with COHb levels greater than or equal to the specified cut-off levels.
Alveolar Carbon Monoxide and Carboxyhaemoglobin
Figure 2 shows the relationship between alveolar breath CO concentration and COHb in 162 smokers and 25 non-smokers. A linear regression was performed, the equation for the regression line being CO (ppm) = 5.09 X COHb (% haemoglobin saturation) + 2.34. The correlation coefficient was 0.97. This high degree of correlation indicated that a COHb level could be estimated reliably from an alveolar level, and the equation for this can be obtained from the same data, using a linear regression of COHb on CO, giving COHb (%haemoglobin saturation) = 0.18 CO (ppm) – 0.14.
The small overlap in the distribution of COHb levels from cigarette smokers and non-smokers was striking, and to some extent surprising in view of the short half-life of COHb in blood.8 The men were seen at the medical center after 1100 hours and it is possible that if COHb estimations had been performed earlier in the day, the discrimination between smokers and non-smokers would have been less clear.
Table 4 shows the improbability of being a smoker for men with COHb cut-off levels, according to the percentage of cigarette smokers in the population assuming all smokers to be cigarette smokers. The probability that a man with a COHb level of greater than or equal to 2.5% is a smoker is greater than 98% for every smoking prevalence shown.
The correlation between alveolar CO concentration and COHb is very close, and the correlation coefficient (0.97) is consistent with the results of previous studies.3 9 10 The relationship between the two variables appears to be approximately linear, the regression equation differing only slightly from that obtained by other workers, 1 11 and is in close agreement with that reported by Jones et al.10
Our study demonstrated that the Ecolyser is a simple method for measuring alveolar CO levels, provided precautions are taken to eliminate the possibility of false readings because of alcohol interference. The instrument, unlike the Infra-Red Gas Analyzer, is not sensitive to CO2 or water vapor, two factors which make it suitable for use on breath samples. The method is rapid and easy to perform, and enables a person’s COHb level to be estimated while avoiding the discomfort and inconvenience of collecting blood. The use of the Ecolyser has previously been shown to discriminate well between smokers and non-smokers.12 The CO results measured on an Ecolyser can be seen by the subject, which is likely to make it useful as a method of reinforcing medical advice to stop smoking – for example, in vascular clinics, in internal clinics, and perhaps even in general practice. It is also likely to be useful when judging the reliabilityof statements made about a man’s smoking habits, and reference to table 3 will provide an approximate indication of whether a person is telling the truth.
We thank the Medical Research Council for part of our financial support. Jillian Boreham is a Liang Research Fellow in Preventative Medicine.
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