ELEVATED BREATH PENTANE IN HEART-FAILURE REDUCED BY FREE-RADICAL SCAVENGER

Pentane, a product of lipid peroxidation, has been detected in situati ons involving ischemic injury. Such injury may be limited if lipid per oxidation can be controlled by antioxidants. The role of lipid peroxid ation in chronic heart failure (CHF) was assessed by measuring breath pentane in patients with CHF vs. age matched controls. The effect of a free radical scavenger on pentane released during CHF was also measur ed. Pentane levels were correlated with the daily dose of captopril, a sulfhydril-containing drug used to treat CHF, which is an angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor. To separate the scavenging effects of ca ptopril from the pharmacologic effects of converting enzyme inhibitors , a crossover study using a nonsulfhydril inhibitor was used. Patients with CHF excreted (p < 0.005) high concentrations of pentane (5.7 +/- 2.1 vs. control 3.6 +/- 1.2 nmol/l). Patients treated with captopril also had significantly higher (p < 0.05) excretion of pentane than the control patients (4.7 +/- 1.3 vs. 3.6 +/- 1.2 nmol/l). The dose of ca ptopril was inversely proportional to the concentration of pentane exc reted (r = 0.55, p < 0.05). Pentane excretion during captopril therapy was significantly lower before (p < 0.01) and after (p < 0.02) nonsul fhydril inhibitor therapy. Conclusion: breath pentane is elevated in C HF and it can be reduced by a free radical scavenger. This reduction o f pentane excretion is not a converting enzyme inhibitor class effect.