Breath Alcohol Elimination Rate and Widmark Factor Derived from Breath Alcohol Concentration in Chinese and Indians in Singapore

To determine the breath alcohol elimination rate (AER) and Widmark factor derived from the maximum breath alcohol concentration (r_{peak BrAC}) in Chinese and Indians in Singapore, and to evaluate the contribution of genetic and non-genetic factors to variability of AER and r_{peak BrAC}.

A total of 180 subjects ingested a Vodka–orange juice mixture, together with a standardized meal and underwent a series of BrAC measurements.

Significant inter-ethnic differences in AER and r_{peak BrAC} were observed in females and males, respectively. Alcohol dehydrogenase 1B (ADH1B) and acetaldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH2) genotypes were identified as significant predictors for AER among males, accounting for 8.5% (P = 0.048) and 23.4% (P < 0.001) of the variance, respectively. ADH1B genotype was identified as a significant predictor for r_{peak BrAC} among males, accounting for 17.1% of the variance (P = 0.001). In females, however, none of the genotypes were found to be significant predictors for breath AER, and r_{peak BrAC}.

ALDH2 and/or ADH1B genotypes in males, but not in females, appear to contribute, albeit modestly, to variability in AER and r_{peak BrAC}. The median AER in Chinese males, Indian males, Chinese females and Indian females is 6.6 μg dl⁻¹ h⁻¹ [99% confidence interval (CI), 5.6–7.5 μg dl⁻¹ h⁻¹], 6.2 μg dl⁻¹ h⁻¹ (99% CI, 5.5–7.0 μg dl⁻¹ h⁻¹), 8.6 μg dl⁻¹ h⁻¹ (99% CI, 7.4–9.7 μg dl⁻¹ h⁻¹) and 7.4 μg dl⁻¹ h⁻¹ (99% CI, 6.2–8.4 μg dl⁻¹ h⁻¹), respectively. The median r_{peak BrAC} in Chinese males, Indian males, Chinese females and Indian females is 0.0229 (99% CI, 0.0216–0.0268), 0.0209 (99% CI, 0.0190–0.0237), 0.0214 (99% CI, 0.0185–0.0254) and 0.0199 (99% CI, 0.0187–0.0227), respectively.



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