Development of a measurement technique for Carbon Monoxide in exhaled breath as a Non-Invasive screening test for Asthma

Asthma is a major health problem facing the US, and the rest of the world's population. What is needed, both for the military as well as the civilian population, are rapid screening tests that would reduce the demand for intensive examinations. Exhaled breath monitoring is thus a new tool in the non-invasive assessment of airway inflammation which may be present before the onset of airway obstruction. Exhaled breath tests are quick, simple to perform and inexpensive with no identifiable risk to subjects. Airway inflammation is regarded as a primary pathogenic feature of asthma and probably precedes the onset of airway obstruction. The latest exhaled mediator exciting interest as a marker of airway inflammation is endogenous carbon monoxide (CO). 2B Technologies, Inc. proposes to develop and demonstrate a CO detector designed specifically for exhaled breath measurement utilizing a novel laser spectroscopic technique. This detector will possess the inherent sensitivity, selectivity and rapid response characteristics necessary to perform measurements on a breath-by-breath basis, and will be simple and inexpensive, allowing broad commercial application. Development of a rapid, non-invasive screening technique for Asthma.