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A Sweat‐Patch Test for Alcohol Consumption: Evaluation in Continuous and Episodic Drinkers
Author(s) -
Phillips Michael,
McAloon Margaret H.
Publication year - 1980
Publication title -
alcoholism: clinical and experimental research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.267
H-Index - 153
eISSN - 1530-0277
pISSN - 0145-6008
DOI - 10.1111/j.1530-0277.1980.tb04837.x
Subject(s) - sweat , ethanol , alcohol , zoology , alcohol consumption , sweat test , food science , chemistry , toxicology , medicine , biology , biochemistry
We evaluated the sweat‐patch test for its ability to detect alcohol consumption. During an 8‐day study, volunteers drank whisky while wearing sweat‐patches that collected sweat continuously at a steady rate. We offered 1.0, 2.0, or 5.0 g etha‐nol/kg/day to 6 continuous drinkers, and 5.0 g ethanol/kg/day for 2 days to 8 episodic drinkers, and removed sweat patches after 2. 4. 6, and 8 days. The concentration of ethanol in the collected sweat (C s ) rose: (1) progressively with the amount of alcohol consumed; and (2) linearly with the mean concentration of ethanol in the blood (C̄ b ) jduring the sweat collection period (In C s = 0.80 In C b ‐ 1.40; r = 0.93, p < 0.001). The test clearly distinguished drinkers from nondrinkers (C s < 0.0022 G/L when no ethanol consumed; C s > 0.0067 G/LWhen 0.5 G ethanol/kg/day consumed and when C b > 0.013 G/L). The sweat patch test provides an objective index of drinking behavior with potential applications in clinical practice and research.