NCJ Number
204099
Journal
Canadian Society of Forensic Science Volume: 36 Issue: 4 Dated: December 2003 Pages: 211-216
Date Published
December 2003
Length
6 pages
Annotation
This study examined whether increasing the salivary flow rate had an impact on the mouth alcohol effect.
Abstract
The retention of alcohol in the oral cavity, referred to as the mouth alcohol effect, is a potentially limiting factor in breath alcohol testing. This retention of alcohol in the mouth has been shown to falsely increase the breath alcohol concentration for up to 15 to 20 minutes. Currently, the only method known to reduce the mouth alcohol effect is to rinse the mouth with water. It has been hypothesized that alcohol in the oral cavity is normally dissipated by evaporation, reabsorption of the alcohol, and salivary flow rate. In order to test whether increases in the salivary flow rate does dissipate the mouth alcohol effect, 19 females and 11 males rinsed their mouths with 20 mL of diluted vodka for 20 seconds and then expectorated. The subjects then chewed one piece of sugar-free gum for 5 minutes then removed the gum and provided breath samples using the the Intoxilyzer 5000C. During the second test, the subjects did not chew gum and kept their mouths closed except when providing the breath sample. Results indicate that chewing gum for 5 minutes caused a mean percent decrease in the breath alcohol concentration, compared to just rinsing with water. Thus, increasing the salivary flow rate, as the gum did, did cause a reduction in the magnitude and duration of the mouth alcohol effect. This information may allow for more rapid breath alcohol concentration testing. Tables, references