Elevation of serum pancreatic secretory trypsin inhibitor following serious injury.

Twenty-six of 31 seriously injured patients (84%) showed a marked elevation of serum pancreatic secretory trypsin inhibitor (PSTI) to more than twice the initial level within the first 2 weeks after admission. Serum PSTI rose from the second or third post-traumatic day and reached the maximum at day 5.8 on average. In uneventful cases, it returned to the level on admission within 2 weeks. The maximum serum PSTI in these patients was significantly correlated with the severity of the injury as judged at the time of admission, indicating that the elevation of serum PSTI in these patients was related to the extent of initial damage. In contrast, serum PSTI in patients with serious complications remained at high level even at 2 weeks after trauma, and it was not correlated with the initial severity of the injury.