title: Clinical validity of a continuous colorimetric method for serum lipase.
abstract: The clinical validity of a continuous colorimetric method for measuring pancreatic lipase was assessed. 1,2-Diacylglycerol containing long-chain fatty acid residues was used as substrate, and the method was adapted to a discrete analyser. The dynamic range was ascertained up to at least 30-fold the upper reference limit. Precision tests on three control sera yielded overall CVs of 4.6% (mean value 21 U/l), 2.4% (115 U/l), and 1.0% (386 U/l), respectively. Using serum samples from normal subjects and patients with pancreatic and non-pancreatic disorders, the present method was compared with a turbidimetric method (r = 0.997; n = 281) and a homogeneous enzyme immunoassay (r = 0.987; n = 93). The reference interval established on 121 healthy subjects was 8-57 U/l (central 95th percentile, median 22 U/l). The sensitivity of this lipase assay in the diagnosis of acute pancreatitis (100%, median 5.6-fold the upper reference limit) was equal to that of the pancreatic isoamylase assay, and higher than that of the total alpha-amylase assay (88.2%); the specificity for acute pancreatitis with respect to a group of patients with acute and chronic non-pancreatic abdominal diseases (91%) was higher than that of both pancreatic isoamylase (76%) and total alpha-amylase (71%).
authors.affiliation: Servizio Analisi Chimico-Cliniche e Neurochimica, Fondazione C. Mondino, Pavia, Italia.
authors.forename: G V
authors.initials: GV
authors.lastname: Melzi d'Eril
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Bosoni
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Moratti
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ventrucci
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Fumagalli
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Tarenghi
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000681:Amylases / Q000097:blood; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000175:diagnosis; D002908:Chronic Disease; D004796:Clinical Enzyme Tests / Q000379:methods*; D003124:Colorimetry / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007517:Isoamylase / Q000097:blood; D008049:Lipase / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D010190:Pancreatic Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis; D010195:Pancreatitis / Q000175:diagnosis; D012016:Reference Values; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013272:Stomach Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis; D013379:Substrate Specificity
chemical_list: D008049:Lipase; D000681:Amylases; D007517:Isoamylase