Institute of Forensic Medicine, Forensic Toxicology and Chemistry, University of Bern, Murtenstrasse 26, 3008 Bern, Switzerland.
Graduate School for Cellular and Biomedical Sciences, University of Bern, Mittelstrasse 43, 3012 Bern, Switzerland.
Alcohol Alcohol. 2023 May 9;58(3):266-273. doi: 10.1093/alcalc/agad010.
Phosphatidylethanol (PEth) is used to monitor alcohol consumption in alcohol use disorder (AUD). In this study, we aim to evaluate the elimination time of PEth with regard to the clinically established 200 and 20 ng/ml cutoffs for PEth 16:0/18:1.
Data from 49 patients undergoing treatment for AUD were evaluated. PEth concentrations were measured at the beginning and repeatedly during the treatment period of up to 12 weeks to monitor the elimination of PEth. We evaluated the time in weeks until the cutoff concentrations of <200 and <20 ng/ml were achieved. The correlation between the initial PEth concentration and the number of days until the PEth concentration had dropped below 200 and 20 ng/ml was assessed by calculating Pearson's correlation coefficients.
The initial PEth concentrations ranged from <20 to >2500 ng/ml. In 31 patients, the time until the cutoff values were reached could be documented. Even after 6 weeks of abstinence, PEth concentrations above the cutoff of 200 ng/ml could still be detected in two patients. A strong significant positive correlation was found between the initial PEth concentration and the time required to drop below the two cutoffs.
A waiting period of more than 6 weeks after declared abstinence should be granted for individuals with AUD before using only one single PEth concentration to assess the consumption behavior. However, we recommend to always use at least two PEth concentrations for the evaluation of alcohol-drinking behaviors in AUD patients.
磷脂酰乙醇（PEth）用于监测酒精使用障碍（AUD）患者的饮酒量。本研究旨在评估 PEth 的消除时间，以达到临床上确立的 200 和 20ng/ml 的 PEth16:0/18:1 截止值。
评估 49 名接受 AUD 治疗患者的数据。在治疗期间，我们多次测量 PEth 浓度，以监测 PEth 的消除情况，最长可达 12 周。我们评估了达到<200 和<20ng/ml 截止值所需的周数。通过计算 Pearson 相关系数评估初始 PEth 浓度与达到低于 200 和 20ng/ml 的 PEth 浓度的天数之间的相关性。
初始 PEth 浓度范围从<20 到>2500ng/ml。在 31 名患者中，可以记录达到截止值的时间。即使在 6 周的禁欲后，仍有两名患者的 PEth 浓度仍高于 200ng/ml 的截止值。初始 PEth 浓度与达到两个截止值所需的时间之间存在很强的正相关关系。
在 AUD 患者仅使用单个 PEth 浓度评估其饮酒行为之前，应给予宣告禁欲后超过 6 周的等待期。然而，我们建议在评估 AUD 患者的饮酒行为时，始终使用至少两个 PEth 浓度。
