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The daytime breath hydrogen profile in children with abdominal symptoms and diarrhoea
Insights
The daytime breath hydrogen profile (DBHP) is a novel tool for detecting carbohydrate malabsorption (CHM) in children. This method correlates symptoms with CHM, offering better detection than traditional tests.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Gastroenterology
- Digestive Physiology
Background:
- Carbohydrate malabsorption (CHM) is a common cause of abdominal pain and diarrhea in children.
- Traditional diagnostic methods, like the lactose breath hydrogen test, may not fully capture CHM's prevalence.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the utility of the daytime breath hydrogen profile (DBHP) for detecting CHM in children presenting with abdominal symptoms.
- To compare the diagnostic performance of DBHP against the standard lactose breath hydrogen test.
Main Methods:
- The study involved 43 children with abdominal pain and/or diarrhea.
- Daytime breath hydrogen profile (DBHP) was assessed and compared with results from a lactose breath hydrogen test.
Main Results:
- The DBHP identified carbohydrate malabsorption in 37% of children, revealing cases missed by the lactose test.
- Abnormal DBHP results correlated with symptom onset in 70% of affected children.
- Functional abdominal complaints and giardiasis were frequently associated with abnormal DBHPs.
Conclusions:
- The DBHP is a promising tool for diagnosing CHM in pediatric patients, offering a more comprehensive assessment than the lactose breath hydrogen test.
- This method allows direct correlation between gastrointestinal symptoms and the physiological effects of CHM.
Abstract:
The daytime breath hydrogen profile (DBHP) enables the study of breath hydrogen (BH) excretion in children under normal dietary and environmental circumstances. We studied the DBHP in 43 children with abdominal pain and (or) diarrhoea in order to evaluate its use in the detection of carbohydrate malabsorption (CHM). The results were compared to those of the lactose BH test. The DBHP was abnormal in 16 patients (37%), 8 of whom also had an abnormal lactose BH test. Five other patients with an abnormal lactose BH test had a normal DBHP. In 7 out of 10 children with an abnormal DBHP, the recorded abdominal symptoms coincided with a sharp increase in BH excretion. Abnormal DBHPs were most frequently found in children with functional abdominal complaints and with giardiasis. Our findings indicate that CHM is more frequently encountered in children with abdominal symptoms than can be detected by the lactose BH test. The DBHP offers new possibilities in the investigation of gastrointestinal conditions by correlating the symptoms directly to the effect induced by CHM.