title: Hyperamylasaemia in asymptomatic HIV patients.
abstract: We studied serum amylase and its isoenzymes prospectively in 163 consecutive asymptomatic patients, 149 men and 14 women, infected with HIV and attending an HIV out-patient clinic. Six patients were receiving dideoxyinosine (DDI), a drug known to cause pancreatitis. No patient, however, had clinical signs suggestive of pancreatitis. Serum total amylase was increased in 39 of 163 patients (24%), in 11 of whom (28%), this was due to increased pancreatic (P) isoamylase alone, in 17 (42%) it was due to salivary (S) type alone and in six (17%) it was due to increase of both P and S fractions. In five patients (13%), macroamylase was detected. Pancreatic amylase was elevated in four of the six patients on DDI. The remaining two had macroamylase. Our results show that asymptomatic hyperamylasaemia is a common finding in HIV patients and that it appears to be heterogenous, i.e. elevation may be due to increase in P or S, both enzyme fractions or macroamylase. The high incidence of macroamylasaemia in HIV patients was an unexpected finding.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Pathology, Royal Free Hospital, London, UK.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Foo
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Konecny
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000681:Amylases / Q000097:blood*; D004796:Clinical Enzyme Tests; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000175:diagnosis*; D006801:Humans; D007527:Isoenzymes / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies
chemical_list: D007527:Isoenzymes; D000681:Amylases