Ion mobility spectrometry in the diagnosis of sarcoidosis: results of a feasibility study.

A feasibility study with ion mobility spectrometry (IMS) was started to find characteristic peaks of volatile organic compounds in exhaled air of 10 mL sampling volume, which might be relevant for the diagnosis of sarcoidosis. Therefore, breath samples of 9 patients with sarcoidosis and suspicion of sarcoidosis because of mediastinal lymph node enlargement were investigated. The 5 patients with confirmed sarcoidosis showed a highly congruent distribution of metabolites in exhaled air which was different in main component analyses from patients with unspecific mediastinal lymph node enlargement. These results are a first step in breath analysis by IMS in patients with sarcoidosis. The IMS as a new method in breath analysis and the first results of the investigations are presented and discussed in detail.