Fractional exhaled nitric oxide-measuring devices: technology update

Abstract

Mauro Maniscalco,1 Carolina Vitale,2 Alessandro Vatrella,2 Antonio Molino,3 Andrea Bianco,4 Gennaro Mazzarella4 1Unit of Respiratory Diseases, Hospital “S Maria della Pietà” of Casoria, Naples, 2Unit of Respiratory Medicine, Department of Medicine and Surgery, University of Salerno, Salerno, 3Department of Respiratory Medicine, University Federico II, 4Department of Cardiothoracic and Respiratory Sciences, Second, University of Naples, Naples, Italy Abstract: The measurement of exhaled nitric oxide (NO) has been employed in the diagnosis of specific types of airway inflammation, guiding treatment monitoring by predicting and assessing response to anti-inflammatory therapy and monitoring for compliance and detecting relapse. Various techniques are currently used to analyze exhaled NO concentrations under a range of conditions for both health and disease. These include chemiluminescence and electrochemical sensor devices. The cost effectiveness and ability to achieve adequate flexibility in sensitivity and selectivity of NO measurement for these methods are evaluated alongside the potential for use of laser-based technology. This review explores the technologies involved in the measurement of exhaled NO. Keywords: asthma, inflammation, nasal nitric oxide

Keywords

• Exhaled nitric oxide
• asthma
• chemiluminescence
• electrochemical
• laser
• device