Analysis of Exhaled Breath From Patients With Lung-/Airway Diseases (BigExBrESs)

Breath analysis offers a unique opportunity to non-invasively retrieve unlimited samples of relevant information on the ongoing internal biochemical processes, as parts of the most volatile components in blood reach the gas phase and are subsequently exhaled (e.g. detection of ethanol in breath). Analysis of exhaled breath provides biochemical information about the metabolism and the pathophysiological state. Chemical analysis of exhaled breath with mass spectrometry identified numerous volatile organic compounds (VOCs) \[low molecular weightcomponents:\< 500 Dalton (Da)\]. Using Big Data analytics, specific patterns of diverse respiratory disease (e.g. for COPD and asthma) can be identified and the different diseases can be distinguished from each other. Specific Big Data Analytics might also improve the management of disease (e.g.avoiding of exacerbations) by identifying early signs of exacerbation risk.