A combined laboratory and field test of a smartphone breath alcohol device and blood alcohol concentration estimator to facilitate moderate drinking among young adults.

Author(s):  
Robert F. Leeman ◽  
Benjamin L. Berey ◽  
Tessa Frohe ◽  
Bonnie H. P. Rowland ◽  
Matthew P. Martens ◽  
...  
1987 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 261-268 ◽  
Author(s):  
G Simpson

Abstract The accuracy of estimates of blood-alcohol concentration based on measurements of breath-alcohol concentration in a randomly selected subject by a random quantitative evidential breath-alcohol analyzer is evaluated with respect to the breath analyzer itself, its calibration, and the biological variables of the subject being tested. There are no suitable experimental data for rigorous determination of the overall accuracy, so I estimate it from the CV of the available data. I find that the uncertainty in these breath-analyzer readings for a random subject in the postabsorptive state is at least +/- 15%, +/- 19%, or +/- 27%, depending on whether +/- 2 CV, the experimental range, or +/- 3 CV, respectively, is used to express the overall uncertainty. Over 90% of this uncertainty is due to biological variables of the subject, and at least 23% of subjects will have their actual blood-alcohol concentration overestimated. Manufacturers' specifications for the accuracy and precision of these instruments are inconsistent with the experimental values reported in the literature and I recommend that an appropriate amount of uncertainty be reflected in the results from these breath analyzers, especially when they are used for law-enforcement purposes.


1987 ◽  
Vol 33 (6) ◽  
pp. 753-756 ◽  
Author(s):  
G Simpson

Abstract Published data are analyzed in order to estimate the accuracy of breath-alcohol measurements for subjects during absorption of orally ingested ethanol. Simultaneous measurements of breath alcohol concentration (BrAC) and venous blood alcohol concentration (VBAC) show that actual VBAC can be overestimated by more than 100% for a significant amount of time after drinking stops. The maximum error found for four individual subjects is +230%, +190%, +60%, and +30%. The magnitude of these errors indicates that results from quantitative evidential breath alcohol analyzers are far less accurate for the absorptive state than they are during the postabsorptive state, but the specifications for accuracy and precision given by manufacturers of these instruments do not reflect this. The results also indicate that there is a significant likelihood that subjects will be in the absorptive state when tested under field conditions. I conclude that estimates of BAC based on BrAC measurements are not reliable in the absorptive state and that the uncertainty associated with such estimates should be accounted for, particularly when the results are used in connection with law enforcement.


Alcohol ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 66 ◽  
pp. 15-20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Paula Drummond-Lage ◽  
Rodrigo Gomes de Freitas ◽  
Gabriel Cruz ◽  
Luigi Perillo ◽  
Marco Antonio Paiva ◽  
...  

1988 ◽  
Vol 34 (5) ◽  
pp. 888-889 ◽  
Author(s):  
G Simpson

Abstract Several concepts and principles advanced by Widmark over 50 years ago are briefly compared with results of recently published experimental work. His conclusions--that breath alcohol analysis can lead to overestimates of actual blood alcohol concentration, and that +/- 2 standard deviations about the average should be used to estimate certain pharmacokinetic parameters for medicolegal alcohol determinations--are supported by these more-recent experimental results.


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