Carbon monoxide monitors for smokers show level of poison in blood

17 November 2009

MD Diagnostics Ltd is exhibiting its carbon monoxide (CO) monitors for measuring CO concentrations in smokers' breath at the Medica trade fair this week.

With one person dying every 8 seconds from smoking related diseases, these new ‘CO Check’ devices are crucial in highlighting the dangers of the deadly habit.

The educational monitors detect cigarette consumption using a CO meter to read the percentage of Carboxyhaemoglobin (%COHb) in the breath, which equates to the amount of CO attached to the red blood cells measured in parts per million readings. The poisonous gas is quickly absorbed into the blood, reducing its capacity to carry oxygen and putting strain on the heart.

The devices use a simple colour-coded system to demonstrate the harm that smoking does to the body, and acts as a visual incentive to quitters who see their levels improving from danger red through to green.

MD Diagnostics is taking three versions of the device to Medica, including one designed for pregnant women, after a recent study carried out in France shows that for every cigarette an expectant mother smokes, her child smokes two:

1. CO Check+ — designed to provide a simple screening test of cigarette consumption. A single breath into the CO Check + will provide an instant display of results in PPM. An appropriate colour light indicator will be displayed highlighting a visual effect to see if the person is a non-smoker, smoker or heavy smoker.
2. CO Check Pro — designed for the professional to carry out simple breath tests whilst providing comprehensive results. The results are instantly displayed in PPM and %COHb coupled with a back-lit display of green, yellow or red. The CO Check Pro is the preferred choice for healthcare professional.
3. CO Baby Check has been designed for healthcare professionals and will again display results in PPM & %COHB. In addition, the CO Baby Check when used on a pregnant mother will display the results of the CO she has passed on to her unborn baby. The result is displayed as %FCHOb or Fetal Carboxyhaemoglobin.

MD Diagnostics is looking for world-wide distributors at the show. Managing Director, Martin Marsh, said: “As our first international exhibition, we are hoping that MEDICA will provide us with the perfect opportunity to meet with potential business partners from across the globe and encourage smokers to think again before lighting up”.

Also on display will be MD Diagnostics' lactose intolerance breath monitor. This innovative hydrogen (H2) monitor screens H2 levels in the breath in PPM to detect intolerance — a condition that affects 75% of the world’s population.