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Acid steatocrit: a reliable screening tool for steatorrhoea
A M Van den Neucker1, E M Kerkvliet, P M Theunissen
1Department of Pediatrics, University Hospital Maastricht, The Netherlands. AVN@SKIN.AZM.NL
Insights
The acid steatocrit (AS) test is a reliable tool for screening pediatric patients for steatorrhea. AS results were significantly higher in children with cystic fibrosis (CF) and celiac disease (CD) compared to healthy children.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Gastroenterology
- Clinical Diagnostics
- Biochemistry
Background:
- Steatorrhea, characterized by excess fat in stool, can indicate various gastrointestinal disorders in children.
- Accurate and accessible diagnostic tools are crucial for identifying pediatric gastrointestinal conditions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the efficacy of the acid steatocrit (AS) test in differentiating healthy children from those with gastrointestinal issues.
- To compare AS results across different pediatric patient groups, including those with cystic fibrosis (CF) and celiac disease (CD).
Main Methods:
- Stool samples from 166 children were analyzed using the acid steatocrit (AS) method.
- Participants included healthy children, asthma patients, treated CF patients with exocrine pancreatic insufficiency, untreated CD patients, and patients with various gastrointestinal problems.
Main Results:
- Median AS values were significantly higher in treated CF patients (24.7%) and untreated CD patients (19.8%) compared to healthy children (3.3%) and asthma patients (4.5%).
- Patients with various gastrointestinal diseases showed a median AS of 5.5%.
- AS results for treated CF and untreated CD patients were notably similar.
Conclusions:
- The acid steatocrit (AS) test is a reliable screening tool for detecting steatorrhea in pediatric patients.
- Elevated AS levels effectively distinguish children with conditions like CF and CD from healthy children and those with asthma.
Unlabelled:
This study compared the acid steatocrit (AS) results of healthy children with those of sick children with and without gastrointestinal involvement. Stool samples of 166 children were investigated, comprising 50 healthy children, 26 asthma patients, and 90 patients with gastrointestinal problems divided into 34 treated cystic fibrosis (CF) patients with exocrine pancreatic insufficiency, 16 untreated coeliac disease (CD) patients and 40 patients with various gastrointestinal problems. The median values (5th-95th percentile) of AS results were 3.3% (0.0-21%) for healthy children, 4.5% (1.8-22.5%) for asthma patients, 24.7% (2.6-68.2%) for treated CF patients with exocrine pancreatic insufficiency, 19.8% (3-77.7%) for untreated CD patients and 5.5% (1.8-29%) for patients with various gastrointestinal diseases.
Conclusion:
The AS results of treated CF patients with exocrine pancreatic insufficiency and untreated CD patients were similar and significantly higher than those of healthy children and asthma patients. AS can be considered to be a reliable tool in screening for steatorrhoea in paediatric patients.