The main challenges associated with breath analysis relate to the low concentrations of many compounds of interest and the complexity of the breath, in addition, respiratory profiles vary significantly between individuals and are influenced by numerous factors including diet, age, gender, medications and physical activity.
The natural variation among the healthy population makes it more difficult to identify robust biomarkers, that is, compounds or groups of compounds that can be used reliably to distinguish between healthy individuals and those with a certain pathology or condition.
Other factors that complicate breath analysis include: the huge number of samples required to conduct a study, their high intrinsic humidity, and the frequent need to store samples long-term before an entire batch can be analyzed together.
Capturing exhaled volatile compounds directly on sorbent tubes allows for analysis by thermal desorption and avoids the complex and laborious sample preparation steps. The latest generation of Markes xr thermo desorber series incorporates advanced TD technologies to address these challenges, making the TD-GC / MS analytical technique the "gold standard" for breath analysis.