The erythromycin breath test (ERMBT) is a method used to measure metabolism (oxidation and elimination from the system) by a part of the cytochrome P450 system.[1] Erythromycin produces 14CO2, and this 14CO2 can be measured to study drugs that interact with the cytochrome P450 system. [2] Erythromycin is tagged with carbon-14 and given as an intravenous injection; after 20 minutes the subject blows up a balloon and the carbon dioxide exhaled that is tagged with carbon-14 shows the activity of the CYP3A4 isoenzyme on the erythromycin. ERMBT can be used to determine how drugs that the CYP3A4 isoenzyme metabolizes will function in a given individual.
Erythromycin is a drug that treats bacterial infections like bronchitis, sexually transmitted diseases, and pneumonia. The medication is in a capsule form and takes on a "delayed-release," to ensure it is only broken down once it reaches the intestine and not by stomach acids.[3]
The test allows doctors to determine or predict an individual’s drug treatment outcome. Will a patient develop serious or fatal side effects from a certain drug? Which foods and drugs should not be taken together? With this and other tests a physician may determine treatment outcomes in advance or study the effects of new drugs.[1]
Some patients have a congenital inability to synthesize certain enzymes, so drugs may build up to toxic levels in their system or other drugs and foods a patient is taking may consume all of their ability to metabolize certain foods and drugs. An example is: when a person taking a cholesterol-lowering statin drug then drinking grapefruit juice, they may have a poor treatment outcome (adverse drug reaction) and sustain liver damage or kidney failure due to drug induced rhabdomyolysis (the breaking up of muscle tissue).[4]
^ abZhou S, Chan E, Lim LY, et al. (October 2004). "Therapeutic drugs that behave as mechanism-based inhibitors of cytochrome P450 3A4". Curr. Drug Metab. 5 (5): 415–42. doi:10.2174/1389200043335450. PMID 15544435.
^Chhun, Stephanie (2009). "Gefitinib-phenytoin interaction is not correlated with the 14 C-erythromycin breath test in healthy male volunteers". British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology. 68 (2): 226–237. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2125.2009.03438.x. PMC 2767287. PMID 19694743.
^"Erythromycin: MedlinePlus Drug Information". medlineplus.gov. Retrieved 2022-05-08.
^Lee, Jonathan W.; Morris, Joan K.; Wald, Nicholas J. (2016-01-01). "Grapefruit Juice and Statins". The American Journal of Medicine. 129 (1): 26–29. doi:10.1016/j.amjmed.2015.07.036. ISSN 0002-9343. PMID 26299317.
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The erythromycinbreathtest (ERMBT) is a method used to measure metabolism (oxidation and elimination from the system) by a part of the cytochrome P450...
Variability in CYP3A4 function can be determined noninvasively by the erythromycinbreathtest (ERMBT). The ERMBT estimates in vivo CYP3A4 activity by measuring...
of CYP3A4 and CYP3A5 in small bowel. Lack of prediction by the erythromycinbreathtest". Drug Metabolism and Disposition. 22 (6): 947–55. PMID 7895614...
susceptible to clindamycin, erythromycin, rifampicin and vancomycin. Granulicatella spp. have been associated with malodorous breath (halitosis) in Japan. It...
such as erythromycin before endoscopy can decrease the amount of blood in the stomach and thus improve the operators view. This erythromycin treatment...
barium swallow. H. pylori can be diagnosed by testing the blood for antibodies, a urea breathtest, testing the stool for signs of the bacteria, or a biopsy...
the alcohol content, it is possible to fail a breathalyzer test after rinsing, although breath alcohol levels return to normal after 10 minutes. In addition...
of antibiotics, specifically those from the macrolide class such as erythromycin, reduce the frequency of exacerbations in those who have two or more...
agglutination tests which are easier to perform. In 2012, modified Faine's criteria (with amendment) was proposed to include shortness of breath and coughing...
Common antibiotics used include amoxicillin, erythromycin, or doxycycline. Antibiotics, such as erythromycin, may also be used to prevent worsening of disease...
and fibrin glue depending on what is found. Prokinetic agents such as erythromycin before endoscopy can decrease the amount of blood in the stomach and...
PMID 20088713. S2CID 2700243. "Hepatitis C vaccine by Inovio could be tested in humans by end of year". Philadelphia Business Journal. January 9, 2013...
passages. Daily treatment of DPB with macrolide antibiotics such as erythromycin eases symptoms and increases survival time, but the disease currently...
stomach. Other side effects may include muscle or joint pains, shortness of breath, and liver problems. It appears to be safe during pregnancy and breastfeeding...
antibiotics, such as fluoroquinolones (ciprofloxacin), doxycycline, erythromycin, vancomycin, or penicillin. FDA-approved agents include ciprofloxacin...
blood pressure in the arteries of the lungs. Symptoms include shortness of breath, fainting, tiredness, chest pain, swelling of the legs, and a fast heartbeat...
Typical antibiotics that are used against diphtheria involve penicillin or erythromycin. People infected with diphtheria must quarantine for at least 48 hours...
practice. The antibiotics penicillin V and erythromycin are not effective for treating acute laryngitis. Erythromycin may improve voice disturbances after a...
overdose and associated risks. Fentanyl is used to help relieve shortness of breath (dyspnea) when patients cannot tolerate morphine, or whose breathlessness...
doxycycline, and in some areas a macrolide (such as azithromycin or erythromycin) is the first-line outpatient treatment in adults. In children with mild...
to Penicillin, usually give for treatment, as well as Ampicillin and Erythromycin, but is extremely resistant to Novobiocin, Optochin, and Tribrissen....
cases where alarm symptoms are present. Noninvasive urea breathtests or stool antigen testing for H pylori should be performed on these patients. People...
plasma levels of nintedanib by a factor of 1.8; other inhibitors such as erythromycin or ciclosporin are expected to have a similar effect. On the other hand...
result in vomiting, nausea, and shortness of breath. In addition, the efficacy of doxycycline and erythromycin succinate may be reduced by alcohol consumption...
perioral dermatitis either along with or without oral tetracycline or oral erythromycin as first and second line treatment respectively. Common adverse drug...
vein. Common side effects include dizziness, problems seeing, shortness of breath, chest pain, and tiredness. Serious side effects may include cardiac arrest...
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