Amylase--its clinical significance: a review of the literature.

This review of the English literature on amylase was undertaken because no recent discussion of the subject could be located, no comprehensive list of disorders causing hyperamylasemia or hyperamylasuria is available, and several major advances in the area have been made, notably the amylase isoenzyme determination and Cam/Ccr ratio. Several important concepts have emerged from this review. First, hyperamylasemia and hyperamylasuria are not specific indices of the presence of pancreatic disease or damage. Second, serum and urinary amylase levels can be spuriously normal with hypertriglyceridemia and pancreatitis. Third, the current emphasis on diagnostic methods for measuring serum amylase isoenzymes promises to improve the specificity of this determination. It will also enhance our understanding of the sources, distribution, metabolism, and elmination of amylase. Fourth, the development of the Cam/Ccr ratio may provide a practical diagnostic tool for separating clinically significant hyperamylasemia due to pancreatitis from that caused by other factors. Both the the isoamylase determination and Cam/Ccr ratio clearly require future research to place their clinical application in the proper perspective.