Additional Value of CH4 Measurement in a Combined 13C/H2 Lactose Malabsorption Breath Test: A Retrospective Analysis

Nutrients

Els Houben²  Vicky De Preter²  Jaak Billen¹  Marc Van Ranst¹ 

[1] Clinical Department of Laboratory Medicine, University Hospitals Leuven, Leuven 3000, Belgium; E-Mails:;Translational Research Center for Gastrointestinal Disorders (TARGID), KU Leuven, Leuven 3000, Belgium; E-Mails:

关键词: lactose malabsorption;    lactase deficiency;    methane;    hydrogen;    breath test;    stable isotopes;   

DOI  :  10.3390/nu7095348

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

The lactose hydrogen breath test is a commonly used, non-invasive method for the detection of lactose malabsorption and is based on an abnormal increase in breath hydrogen (H₂) excretion after an oral dose of lactose. We use a combined ¹³C/H₂ lactose breath test that measures breath ¹³CO₂ as a measure of lactose digestion in addition to H₂ and that has a better sensitivity and specificity than the standard test. The present retrospective study evaluated the results of 1051 ¹³C/H₂ lactose breath tests to assess the impact on the diagnostic accuracy of measuring breath CH₄ in addition to H₂ and ¹³CO₂. Based on the ¹³C/H₂ breath test, 314 patients were diagnosed with lactase deficiency, 138 with lactose malabsorption or small bowel bacterial overgrowth (SIBO), and 599 with normal lactose digestion. Additional measurement of CH₄ further improved the accuracy of the test as 16% subjects with normal lactose digestion and no H₂-excretion were found to excrete CH₄. These subjects should have been classified as subjects with lactose malabsorption or SIBO. In conclusion, measuring CH₄-concentrations has an added value to the ¹³C/H₂ breath test to identify methanogenic subjects with lactose malabsorption or SIBO.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2015 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.