Unusual association of macroamylasemia and hyperlipasemia: report of two cases.

OBJECTIVE

To describe two cases of macroamylasemia associated with hyperlipasemia.

METHODS AND RESULTS

The patients were a young male soccer player who had sustained a kick in the groin during a match and a woman with a specific dyspeptic complaints. In both the macroamylasemia had been previously undetected; when admitted with the above complaints, serum pancreatic isoamylase levels, as determined by the inhibitor method, were markedly increased, as were serum lipase levels. In both cases these findings led to the erroneous diagnosis of pancreatitis and consequent multiple diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. The cause of the hyperlipasemia was not clear in either case, although the possibility that it was due to the presence of macrolipase cannot be excluded.

CONCLUSION

The possibility of macroamylasemia associated with hyperlipasemia should be kept in mind to avoid unnecessary diagnostic and therapeutic efforts.