Pancreatic hyperenzymaemia and hypertransaminasaemia in healthy subjects. Report of three cases.
Three healthy subjects, two from Italy and one from the United States, showing a chronic increase in serum pancreatic enzymes and transaminases are described. The enzyme elevations reached very high levels but were not constant; rather, they fluctuated and sometimes returned to normal. Furthermore, tests for non-hepatic diseases that can be accompanied by an increase in serum transaminases, such as coeliac disease, were normal. The intervals between the first finding of the pancreatic hyperenzymaemia and the hypertransaminasaemia and this study ranged from 2 to 6 years (mean 4.3 years), during which the three subjects remained healthy, with no clinical, laboratory or imaging evidence of disease. These data support the conclusion that these increases in enzymes are benign; however, monitoring of these three subjects is already underway. Awareness of this anomaly is important, both to relieve the distress of the persons involved, as well as to avoid the numerous, sometimes invasive, complex and expensive examinations that might otherwise be unnecessarily performed.
Institute of Internal Medicine, Pad. 11, University of Bologna, Sant'Orsola Hospital, Via Massarenti, 9, 40138 Bologna, Italy. gullo@med.unibo.it
L
L
Gullo
M
M
Migliori
P
P
Tomassetti
W
W
Steinberg
D000328:Adult; D000681:Amylases / Q000097:blood*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008049:Lipase / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D010179:Pancreas / Q000201:enzymology*; D000637:Transaminases / Q000097:blood*
D000637:Transaminases; D008049:Lipase; D000681:Amylases