Elimination half-life of acetone in humans: Case reports and review of the literature

Two instances of finding abnormally high concentrations of acetone in urine (0.10 g/dL and 0.052 g/dL) without any measurable amounts of ethanol (< 0.005 g/dL) or isopropanol (< 0.005 g/dL) prompted a survey of the elimination kinetics of isopropanol and its metabolite acetone in humans. In a hospital patient who had ingested denatured alcohol, the elimination half- life (t( 1/2 )) of acetone during detoxification was 27 h and not 3-5 h as reported by other workers. Several other literature reports of individuals who had ingested isopropanol as well as controlled studies after administration of moderate amounts of acetone and/or isopropanol support the notion of a long elimination half-life of 17-27 h for acetone compared with a t( 1/2 ) of 1-3 h for isopropanol.