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A modification of the quininium resin test for assessing gastric acidity
D J Passaro1, A Hurwitz, G Triadafilopoulos
1Department of Medicine, Stanford University Medical Center, Stanford, CA, USA. doug@uic.edu
Background:
Gastric acid is an important defence against enteric infection. Studies investigating the relationship between hypochlorhydria and enteric infections or gastric malignancy have been limited by difficulties in the non-invasive measurement of gastric acidity.
Aim:
To develop a blood test for hypochlorhydria based on the quininium resin test.
Methods:
Quininium resin dissociates to liberate free quinine at pH
Results:
After quininium resin ingestion, mean quinine levels were lower in the acid-suppressed than in the control condition at all times (P < 0.001). Optimized cut-off values at 90 min post-ingestion yielded 95% accuracy rates in both serum and blood. Quininium resin was well tolerated.
Conclusions:
Using blood or serum, the quininium resin test identifies hypochlorhydria accurately and non-invasively. This test may be useful in screening for gastric atrophy and in studies investigating hypochlorhydria.