Gas Analysis Rapidly Identifies Diarrhea Pathogens

Researchers in the United Kingdom have developed a method for rapid diagnosis of bacterial and viral diarrhea based on the analysis of volatile organic compounds in stool samples.

Investigators at the University of Bristol (UK) and the University of the West of England (Bristol, UK) collected stool samples from 35 patients with infectious diarrhea and from six healthy controls. Gaseous compounds were extracted from the headspace of the container, using solid phase microextraction, and were analyzed using gas chromatography and mass spectroscopy.

Results published in the January 2004 issue of Gut revealed that the main pathogens responsible for diarrhea in hospitals displayed characteristic patterns of volatile gases. Furan species without indoles indicated Clostridium difficile, ethyl dodecanoate indicated rotavirus, ammonia without ethyl dodecanoate suggested other enteric viruses, and the absence of hydrocarbons and terpenes indicated Campylobacter infection.

Senior author Dr. Norman Ratcliffe, professor of analytical sciences at the University of Western England explained, "This test has the potential to reduce mortality and unnecessary suffering and, crucially, the spread of infection. By using portable instruments we can identify which volatiles are found in a stool sample in less than an hour of the sample collection being made, and use this information to make a rapid diagnosis. The ultimate goal will be to develop a portable vapor analysis machine, capable of diagnosing at the bedside.”



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University of Bristol
University of the West of England