Transdermal Alcohol Measurement: A Review of the Literature

• NCJ Number: 215435
• Journal: Canadian Society of Forensic Science Journal Volume: 29 Issue: 2 Dated: June 2006 Pages: 65-71
• Author(s): J. S. Hawthorne; M. H. Wojcik
• Date Published: June 2006
• Length: 7 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Historical Overview
• Language: French; English
• Country: Canada

Annotation

This article examines the science of transdermal (through the skin) alcohol testing by summarizing the scientific literature that dates back almost 70 years.

Abstract

Findings to date do not indicate that existing transdermal devices for measuring alcohol excretion can replace a breath analyzer because of variations in the physiological variables of the skin; however, such devices can identify drinking episodes in a continuous screening environment, which makes these devices useful in monitoring drinking among alcohol-dependent offenders in order to reduce recidivism and identify individuals who need treatment. The fact that measurable amounts of ingested alcohol are excreted through human skin was first published in 1936, and involved an estimate by Nyman and Palmlov that 1 percent of ingested alcohol is ultimately excreted through the skin. Subsequent to this original study, little additional work was done for 30 years. A number of papers were published in the 1960s and 1970s that dealt specifically with how the body processes drugs, alcohol, and nonelectrolytes in the skin and sweat glands. The first concept that used transdermal alcohol testing was an alcohol "sweat-patch," which was applied to the subject's skin for several days in order to absorb liquid sweat excreted through the skin. The patch was removed and analyzed by using separate equipment, so as to determine the amount of ethanol that each sweat-patch absorbed. These results were then linked to the consumption of alcoholic beverages. A significant amount of research was performed with the sweat-patch between 1980 and 1984. Other research conducted in the late 1980s measured the ethanol concentration in vapors formed above the skin. The 1990s ushered in a new era of measuring devices for transdermal alcohol measurement, including development of the Wrist Transdermal Alcohol Sensor. 2 figures and 22 references