Table 2: Key findings of combination biomarkers as reported by various studies.
Authors | Biomarkers | Sample Source | Study Population | Key Findings |
Bell, et al. [88] | GGT, CDT, AST, ALT and MCV | Serum/Plasma | 400 Alcoholic patients observed for over 4 weeks | Highest sensitivities for CDT and GGT (65% to 73%). Lower sensitivity for AST, ALT, and MCV (50%, 35%, and 52%, respectively) |
Doyle, et al. [89] | FAEE | Serum | Healthy subjects ingested a weight-adjusted amount of ethanol at a fixed rate |
Positive over a period of 24 hour |
Scouller, et al. [90] | CDT, GGT | Serum/Plasma | Meta-analysis of 110 clinical studies | CDT was little better than GGT in detecting high or intermediate-risk alcohol consumption in a large, multi-centre, predominantly community-based sample |
Wurst, et al. [91] | Breath, urinary ethanol, urinary EtG, CDT, PEth, GGT, MCV | Breath/Serum/Plasma/Urine/Whole blood | Forensic psychiatry inpatient (committed a substance-related offence). | Ethyl glucuronide is capable of detecting alcohol consumption in cases where neither traditional biological state markers of alcohol intake nor clinical impression gave an indication |
Borucki, et al. [68] | FAEE | Serum | Heavy drinkers | Remains elevated at least up to 44 hours |
Borucki, et al. [92] | Serum FAEE, Urinary EtG, 5-HTOL/5-HIAA in Urine | Serum/Urine | Sixteen (14 male, 2 female) heavy alcohol drinkers | FAEE declined until 15 hours and 5-HTOL/5-HIAA declined after 29 hours, however EtG concentration showed 100% sensitivity for 39 hours |
Chrostek, et al. [44] | CDT, MCV, AST, ALT, GGT and Sialic Acid (SA) | Serum/Plasma | Subjects recently abstinent from alcohol consumption | CDT appeared to have higher sensitivity however the sensitivity decreased for all studied alcohol markers when the period of abstinence was longer than one week |
Høiseth, et al. [54] | EtG | Urine | Ten male volunteers consumed ethanol at a fixed dose of 0.5 g/kg body weight in a fasted state |
Detected up to 13-20 hours with small quantity |
Halender, et al. [93] | EtG | Urine | Alcoholic patients undergoing alcohol detoxification | Detected up to 40-90 hours (< 0.5 mg/g) |
Morini, et al. [94] | Hair EtG and CDT | Serum/Hair | Subjects with alcoholic history | Superior sensitivity specificity of Hair EtG (then CDT) |
Kharbouch, et al. [95] | Hair EtG, CDT, GGT, ATL, AST | Serum/Hair | Teetotallers, low-risk drinkers, at-risk drinkers, or heavy drinkers | Hair EtG diagnostic performance was significantly better |
Hastedt, et al. [96] | CDT, MCV, GGT, ALT, AST, Hair EtG and Hair FAEE | Serum/Hair | Social drinkers, non-drinkers and alcoholics group | Hair FAEEs and Hair EtG offered a longer time frame of several months for detecting chronic excessive alcohol consumption than the traditional biomarkers |
Alladio, et al. [97] | ALT, AST, CDT, GGT, MCV, EtG, FAEE | Blood/Hair | 125 subjects including social and heavy drinkers | Hair FAEEs and Hair EtG offered detection of chronic alcohol consumption |