[Quantification of the drug-metabolizing enzyme system in liver diseases: a comparison between antipyrine saliva clearance and the aminopyrine breath test].

The metabolic activity of the hepatic cytochrome P450 system was studied in 53 ambulatory subjects. 18 of these were cirrhotics and 23 had non-cirrhotic liver disease, documented by biopsy, serologic, ultrasound or computerized tomography findings, and characterized by quantitative liver function tests, such as galactose elimination capacity and indocyanine green fractional clearance. For comparison, 12 normal control subjects were also included. All subjects were given 10 mg/kg body weight antipyrine and saliva concentrations determined with an HPLC-method at 24 and 48 hours after dosing. Antipyrine saliva clearance (ASC) was calculated according to a two-point method (Cl1), and compared with a one-point method (Cl2) using the 24 h sample only. These subjects also underwent an aminopyrine breath test (ABT), breath samples being collected at regular intervals during 60 minutes following injection of a tracer dose of 1.5 muCi (14C-dimethylamino)antipyrine. Cl1 and Cl2 correlated strongly (r = 0.93). On the basis of smaller variations (particularly in control subjects), better definition of disease severity and convenience and time saving, Cl2 is to be preferred. Comparison of Cl2 with ABT showed that both procedures apparently quantify overlapping enzymatic activities. However, the relationship between Cl2 and ABT values, albeit highly significant (r = 0.72), suggests that only about half of the variables are subject to the same determinant. In addition, a positive intercept of the regression line extrapolated to the Cl2 axis points to quantitatively important extrahepatic breakdown of antipyrine. The results suggest that, in view of the wide variation in normal values (presumably in part influenced by exogenous pollutants), ASC only provides an approximation of hepatic metabolic activity.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)