Skip to main content
NCBI home page
Mediators of Inflammation logoLink to Mediators of Inflammation
. 2001 Dec;10(6):351–354. doi: 10.1080/09629350120102398

Hydrogen peroxide in breath condensate during a common cold.

R Q Jöbsis 1, S L Schellekens 1, A Fakkel-Kroesbergen 1, R H Raatgeep 1, J C de Jongste 1
PMCID: PMC1781722  PMID: 11817678

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) in exhaled air condensate is elevated in inflammatory disorders of the lower respiratory tract. It is unknown whether viral colds contribute to exhaled H2O2. AIM: To assess exhaled H2O2 during and after a common cold. METHODS: We examined H2O2 in the breath condensate of 20 normal subjects with acute symptoms of a common cold and after recovery 2 weeks later and, similarly, in 10 subjects without infection. H2O2 was measured with a fluorimetric assay. RESULTS: At the time of infection exhaled H2O2 (median, ranges) was 0.20 microM (0.03-1.2 microM), and this decreased to 0.09 microM (< 0.01-0.40 microM) after recovery (p = 0.006). There was no significant difference in lung function (forced vital capacity and forced expiratory volume in 1 sec) during and after colds. In the controls, exhaled H2O2 did not change over a 2-week period. CONCLUSIONS: H2O2 in exhaled air condensate is elevated during a common cold, and returns to normal within 2 weeks of recovery in healthy subjects. Hence, symptomatic upper respiratory tract infection may act as a confounder in studies of H2O2 as a marker of chronic lower airway inflammation.

Full Text

The Full Text of this article is available as a PDF (128.3 KB).

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Corne J. M., Holgate S. T. Mechanisms of virus induced exacerbations of asthma. Thorax. 1997 Apr;52(4):380–389. doi: 10.1136/thx.52.4.380. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Dekhuijzen P. N., Aben K. K., Dekker I., Aarts L. P., Wielders P. L., van Herwaarden C. L., Bast A. Increased exhalation of hydrogen peroxide in patients with stable and unstable chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 1996 Sep;154(3 Pt 1):813–816. doi: 10.1164/ajrccm.154.3.8810624. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Dohlman A. W., Black H. R., Royall J. A. Expired breath hydrogen peroxide is a marker of acute airway inflammation in pediatric patients with asthma. Am Rev Respir Dis. 1993 Oct;148(4 Pt 1):955–960. doi: 10.1164/ajrccm/148.4_Pt_1.955. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Fraenkel D. J., Bardin P. G., Sanderson G., Lampe F., Johnston S. L., Holgate S. T. Lower airways inflammation during rhinovirus colds in normal and in asthmatic subjects. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 1995 Mar;151(3 Pt 1):879–886. doi: 10.1164/ajrccm/151.3_Pt_1.879. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Grünberg K., Smits H. H., Timmers M. C., de Klerk E. P., Dolhain R. J., Dick E. C., Hiemstra P. S., Sterk P. J. Experimental rhinovirus 16 infection. Effects on cell differentials and soluble markers in sputum in asthmatic subjects. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 1997 Aug;156(2 Pt 1):609–616. doi: 10.1164/ajrccm.156.2.9610079. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Horváth I., Donnelly L. E., Kiss A., Kharitonov S. A., Lim S., Chung K. F., Barnes P. J. Combined use of exhaled hydrogen peroxide and nitric oxide in monitoring asthma. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 1998 Oct;158(4):1042–1046. doi: 10.1164/ajrccm.158.4.9710091. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Hyslop P. A., Sklar L. A. A quantitative fluorimetric assay for the determination of oxidant production by polymorphonuclear leukocytes: its use in the simultaneous fluorimetric assay of cellular activation processes. Anal Biochem. 1984 Aug 15;141(1):280–286. doi: 10.1016/0003-2697(84)90457-3. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Jöbsis Q., Raatgeep H. C., Hermans P. W., de Jongste J. C. Hydrogen peroxide in exhaled air is increased in stable asthmatic children. Eur Respir J. 1997 Mar;10(3):519–521. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Jöbsis Q., Raatgeep H. C., Schellekens S. L., Hop W. C., Hermans P. W., de Jongste J. C. Hydrogen peroxide in exhaled air of healthy children: reference values. Eur Respir J. 1998 Aug;12(2):483–485. doi: 10.1183/09031936.98.12020483. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Jöbsis Q., Raatgeep H. C., Schellekens S. L., Kroesbergen A., Hop W. C., de Jongste J. C. Hydrogen peroxide and nitric oxide in exhaled air of children with cystic fibrosis during antibiotic treatment. Eur Respir J. 2000 Jul;16(1):95–100. doi: 10.1034/j.1399-3003.2000.16a17.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Kietzmann D., Kahl R., Müller M., Burchardi H., Kettler D. Hydrogen peroxide in expired breath condensate of patients with acute respiratory failure and with ARDS. Intensive Care Med. 1993;19(2):78–81. doi: 10.1007/BF01708366. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Scheideler L., Manke H. G., Schwulera U., Inacker O., Hämmerle H. Detection of nonvolatile macromolecules in breath. A possible diagnostic tool? Am Rev Respir Dis. 1993 Sep;148(3):778–784. doi: 10.1164/ajrccm/148.3.778. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Mediators of Inflammation are provided here courtesy of Wiley

RESOURCES