Intended!use!
The!piCO™,!piCObaby™!and!Micro+™!Smokerlyzer®!products!are!breath!carbon!monoxide!monitors!
intended!for!multi-patient!use!by!healthcare!professionals!in!smoking!cessation!programmes!and!
research.!They!can!also!be!used!as!an!indicator!of!carbon!monoxide!poisoning!in!a!healthcare!
environment.!
!
Introduction!!
Carbon!monoxide!(CO)!is!a!toxic,!odourless,!colourless!and!tasteless!gas1.!It!is!formed!by!the!
incomplete!combustion!of!organic!material!at!high!temperatures,!with!an!insufficient!oxygen!supply.!!
When!inhaled,!CO!displaces!oxygen!in!the!bloodstream!to!form!carboxyhaemoglobin!(COHb).!This!
starves!body!tissue!of!oxygen!restricting!the!body’s!performance!and!causing!health!implications2.!
CO!can!remain!in!the!bloodstream!for!up!to!24!hours,!depending!on!factors!such!as!physical!activity,!
sex,!and!inhalation!intensity.!The!half-life!is!about!5!hours3.!!
CO!(ppm),!carboxyhaemoglobin!(%COHb)!and!foetal!carboxyhaemoglobin!(%FCOHb)!correlation:!
Breath!carbon!monoxide!is!measured!in!parts!per!million!(ppm)!and!blood!carboxyhaemoglobin!is!
measured!in!percentages!(%COHb!and!%FCOHb)4.!The!three!are!compatible!and!convertible:!the!
ppm!CO!reading!relates!to!gas!in!the!lungs!and!on!the!breath!(i.e.!the!amount!of!poisonous!CO!that!
has!been!inhaled),!and!the!%COHb!and!%FCOHb!readings!relate!to!the!percentage!of!vital!oxygen!
that!has!been!replaced!in!the!bloodstream4.!!
The!piCO™!Smokerlyzer®!displays!both!CO!ppm!and!%COHb,!the!piCObaby™!Smokerlyzer®!displays!
both!CO!ppm,%FCOHb!and!%COHb!and!the!Micro+™!Smokerlyzer®!displays!CO!ppm,!%COHb!and!
%FCOHb.!However!all!devices!only!directly!measure!CO!ppm,!the!%COHb!and!%FCOHb!is!a!
calculation!based!on!clinical!evidence.!Clinical!research!has!demonstrated!that!a!useful!relationship!
between!carbon!monoxide!and!carboxyhaemoglobin!is!obtained!after!a!short!period!of!breath-
holding.!!
The!cut-off!point!between!smoker!and!non-smoker!differs!based!on!local!regulation,!Bedfont®!have!
created!cut-off!levels!as!a!guide!only,!see!‘traffic!light!pre-set!cut-off!levels’,!these!can!be!altered!in-
line!with!your!local!regulations!from!the!settings!screen.!
!
Taking!a!breath!test!
1. Attach!a!breath!sampling!D-piece™!and!new!SteriBreath™!mouthpiece!
2. Turn!on!the!monitor!by!pressing!the!power!button!once!
3. Press!‘breath!test’!symbol!on!screen,! or !
4. To!cancel!the!breath!test,!press!!
5. Inhale!and!hold!breath!for!the!pre-set!15!second!countdown!
6. A!beep!will!sound!during!the!last!three!seconds!of!the!countdown.!!
7. Blow!slowly!into!mouthpiece,!aiming!to!empty!lungs!completely!