title: Evaluation of amniotic fluid elastolytic activity: can it be a method of fetal lung maturity assessment? A comparison with Gluck's L/S test.
abstract: Amniotic fluid elastolytic activity was assessed in a group of 120 women who delivered preterm infants and in 35 women who delivered at term. Amniotic fluid elastolytic activity decreases as pregnancy progresses. The lecithin-to-sphingomyelin (L/S) ratio in women's amniotic fluid was determined by the method developed by Gluck and associates [6] and elastolytic activity by that developed by Mehdi and associates. A significant negative correlation was found between the amniotic fluid L/S ratio and amniotic fluid elastolytic activity (r = -0.932; p < 0.001). The border value of elastolytic activity that indicates lung maturity (L/S ratio equal to or greater than 2) is 2.01 +/- 0.05 mmol/min ml. In the amniotic elastolytic activity test, it is the value that differentiates mature from immature lungs. The amniotic fluid elastolytic activity test is characterized by high sensitivity (91.43%) and specificity (91.67%), high positive prognostic value (76.19%) and low negative prognostic value (2.65%). The test parameters do not therefore differ greatly from those of the Gluck test. Moreover, the amniotic fluid elastolytic activity test is cheaper and takes less time to perform.
authors.affiliation: 2nd Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Silesian School of Medicine.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Bazowska
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jendryczko
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dudkiewicz
mesh_terms: D000653:Amniotic Fluid / Q000201:enzymology*; D001724:Birth Weight; D003238:Connective Tissue / Q000196:embryology; D005260:Female; D005325:Fetal Organ Maturity; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007234:Infant, Premature; D008168:Lung / Q000196:embryology*; D009842:Oligopeptides / Q000378:metabolism; D010196:Pancreatic Elastase / Q000032:analysis*; D010713:Phosphatidylcholines / Q000032:analysis*; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011247:Pregnancy; D011379:Prognosis; D012127:Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Newborn / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013109:Sphingomyelins / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: C098115:N-methoxysuccinyltrialanine-4-nitroanilide; D009842:Oligopeptides; D010713:Phosphatidylcholines; D013109:Sphingomyelins; D010196:Pancreatic Elastase