The limitations of mouth alcohol detection systems in breath alcohol testing: Case reports
Contamination of a person's breath alcohol with alcohol from sources other than the lungs can falsely elevate the results of a breath alcohol test. This is known as “mouth alcohol” contamination in breath alcohol testing. To combat the issue of mouth alcohol contamination, manufacturers of brea...
Saved in:
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Elsevier
2025-06-01
|
| Series: | Forensic Science International: Synergy |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589871X25000026 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1832595326768250880 |
|---|---|
| author | Aaron Olson |
| author_facet | Aaron Olson |
| author_sort | Aaron Olson |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Contamination of a person's breath alcohol with alcohol from sources other than the lungs can falsely elevate the results of a breath alcohol test. This is known as “mouth alcohol” contamination in breath alcohol testing. To combat the issue of mouth alcohol contamination, manufacturers of breath alcohol analyzers have incorporated slope detection algorithms into their devices known as “slope detectors.” Despite this effort, breath alcohol analyzers sometimes fail to detect mouth alcohol contamination. Three case reports presented in this paper strongly suggest undetected mouth alcohol contamination. The significant legal consequences of a falsely elevated breath alcohol concentration (BrAC) due to mouth alcohol contamination require further research into the ability of slope detectors to identify mouth alcohol. Greater transparency and independent scientific examination of the algorithms involved in mouth alcohol detection systems are needed to ensure accuracy and fairness in breath alcohol testing. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-5f087291f4e64cfdbbadef677e595bcb |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2589-871X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Forensic Science International: Synergy |
| spelling | doaj-art-5f087291f4e64cfdbbadef677e595bcb2025-01-19T06:26:32ZengElsevierForensic Science International: Synergy2589-871X2025-06-0110100573The limitations of mouth alcohol detection systems in breath alcohol testing: Case reportsAaron Olson0PO Box 132 Hugo, MN 55038, United States.; ARO Consulting LLC, United StatesContamination of a person's breath alcohol with alcohol from sources other than the lungs can falsely elevate the results of a breath alcohol test. This is known as “mouth alcohol” contamination in breath alcohol testing. To combat the issue of mouth alcohol contamination, manufacturers of breath alcohol analyzers have incorporated slope detection algorithms into their devices known as “slope detectors.” Despite this effort, breath alcohol analyzers sometimes fail to detect mouth alcohol contamination. Three case reports presented in this paper strongly suggest undetected mouth alcohol contamination. The significant legal consequences of a falsely elevated breath alcohol concentration (BrAC) due to mouth alcohol contamination require further research into the ability of slope detectors to identify mouth alcohol. Greater transparency and independent scientific examination of the algorithms involved in mouth alcohol detection systems are needed to ensure accuracy and fairness in breath alcohol testing.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589871X25000026Breath alcoholSlope detectorsMouth alcoholGERDForensic breath alcohol |
| spellingShingle | Aaron Olson The limitations of mouth alcohol detection systems in breath alcohol testing: Case reports Forensic Science International: Synergy Breath alcohol Slope detectors Mouth alcohol GERD Forensic breath alcohol |
| title | The limitations of mouth alcohol detection systems in breath alcohol testing: Case reports |
| title_full | The limitations of mouth alcohol detection systems in breath alcohol testing: Case reports |
| title_fullStr | The limitations of mouth alcohol detection systems in breath alcohol testing: Case reports |
| title_full_unstemmed | The limitations of mouth alcohol detection systems in breath alcohol testing: Case reports |
| title_short | The limitations of mouth alcohol detection systems in breath alcohol testing: Case reports |
| title_sort | limitations of mouth alcohol detection systems in breath alcohol testing case reports |
| topic | Breath alcohol Slope detectors Mouth alcohol GERD Forensic breath alcohol |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589871X25000026 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT aaronolson thelimitationsofmouthalcoholdetectionsystemsinbreathalcoholtestingcasereports AT aaronolson limitationsofmouthalcoholdetectionsystemsinbreathalcoholtestingcasereports |