TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2010//
TI  - Abstinence monitoring of suspected drinking drivers: ethyl glucuronide in hair versus CDT
JO  - Traffic injury prevention
A1  - Liniger, Bruno
A1  - Nguyen, Ariane
A1  - Friedrich-Koch, Andrea
A1  - Yegles, Michel
SP  - 123
EP  - 126
VL  - 11
IS  - 2
N2  - OBJECTIVE: Ethyl glucuronide (EtG) determinations in the hair of self-reported teetotalers were reviewed and compared with carbohydrate-deficient transferrin (CDT) blood tests (by immunochemistry and high-performance liquid chromatography [HPLC]). METHODS: A retrospective study was carried out on 154 people whose fitness to drive had to be assessed because of the suspicion of relevant alcohol problems. RESULTS: EtG was detected in 55 percent of the hair samples and abstinence thus disproved. In two thirds (67%) of these cases, alcohol consumption was even shown to be excessive (EtG values > 30 pg/mg). Of the EtG-positive subjects 54 and 82 percent had CDT values within the reference range by immunochemistry and HPLC, respectively. Thirty-nine percent of the EtG-negative subjects had increased immunochemical CDT values; in contrast, 96 percent had HPLC CDT values within the normal range. CONCLUSIONS: EtG analysis in hair is a useful tool for assessing fitness to drive in suspected drinking drivers; compared to CDT values it provides a direct and unequivocal marker for reliable abstinence monitoring over a period of several months, depending on the length of the hair.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 1538-9588
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15389580903518280
ID  - ref1
ER  -