TY - JOUR
T1 - Flatography
T2 - Detection of gastrointestinal diseases by faecal gas analysis
AU - de Groot, Evelien F
AU - de Meij, Tim G
AU - Berkhout, Daniel J
AU - van der Schee, Marc P
AU - de Boer, Nanne K
PY - 2015/11/6
Y1 - 2015/11/6
N2 - Patients presenting with gastro-intestinal symptoms might suffer from a range of possible underlying diseases. An unmet need exists for novel cost-effective, reproducible, easy-to-perform and non-invasive tests. Hippocrates used body odours to diagnose diseases circa 460 before Christ. The art of diagnostic smelling is making a promising high-tech come-back with portable "electronic diagnostic noses". Analysis of faecal volatile organic compounds is a novel field in metabolomics with considerable potential to improve the diagnosis, phenotyping and monitoring of gastro-intestinal disease. Challenges will be to mature over the coming years by development of a standardized methodology for stool sample collection, storage, handling and analysis. Furthermore, key volatiles need to be identified to improve test accuracy and sensitivity by development of sensors tailored toward the accurate identification of disease specific volatiles. If these challenges are adequately faced, analysis of faecal volatiles has realistic potential to considerably improve screening, diagnosis and disease monitoring for gastro-intestinal diseases.
AB - Patients presenting with gastro-intestinal symptoms might suffer from a range of possible underlying diseases. An unmet need exists for novel cost-effective, reproducible, easy-to-perform and non-invasive tests. Hippocrates used body odours to diagnose diseases circa 460 before Christ. The art of diagnostic smelling is making a promising high-tech come-back with portable "electronic diagnostic noses". Analysis of faecal volatile organic compounds is a novel field in metabolomics with considerable potential to improve the diagnosis, phenotyping and monitoring of gastro-intestinal disease. Challenges will be to mature over the coming years by development of a standardized methodology for stool sample collection, storage, handling and analysis. Furthermore, key volatiles need to be identified to improve test accuracy and sensitivity by development of sensors tailored toward the accurate identification of disease specific volatiles. If these challenges are adequately faced, analysis of faecal volatiles has realistic potential to considerably improve screening, diagnosis and disease monitoring for gastro-intestinal diseases.
U2 - 10.4292/wjgpt.v6.i4.111
DO - 10.4292/wjgpt.v6.i4.111
M3 - Article
C2 - 26558144
VL - 6
SP - 111
EP - 113
JO - World Journal of Gastrointestinal Pharmacology and Therapeutics
JF - World Journal of Gastrointestinal Pharmacology and Therapeutics
SN - 2150-5349
IS - 4
ER -