New technologies in the use of exhaled breath analysis for biological monitoring

Breath analysis is an attractive noninvasive procedure for screening worker s exposed to solvents. It has been used in numerous laboratory based studie s and for field research. Despite the obvious advantages in routine biologi cal monitoring it has failed to become widely accepted as a tool in occupat ional hygiene. Recent advances in breath sampling and analysis are such tha t it is likely to become more widely used in the future. In this paper, the past 5 years have been reviewed to try to assess what developments might n ow contribute to the increased use of breath analysis in biological monitor ing; in particular, the development of a selected ion flow tube mass spectr ometer for real time direct analysis of trace gases in breath and the more immediately available and less expensive indirect methods involving collect ion devices with adsorbent tubes is important. The introduction of guidance values for biological monitoring with clear advice on sampling times and t he recognition of the importance of quality assurance programmes will help improve confidence in the technique.