Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Search research articles

Related Experiment Videos

Faecal elastase-I: helpful in analysing steatorrhoea?

T Symersky¹, A van der Zon, I Biemond

¹Department of Gastroenterology-Hepatology (C4-P), Leiden University Medical Centre, P.O. Box 9600, 2300 RC Leiden, The Netherlands.

The Netherlands Journal of Medicine

|December 14, 2004

Summary

The faecal elastase-1 test (FE-1) is a specific, noninvasive method for determining steatorrhoea causes. However, it lacks sensitivity for detecting chronic pancreatitis and exocrine pancreatic insufficiency.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Diagnosis of takotsubo cardiomyopathy is increasing over time in patients presenting as ST-elevation myocardial infarction.

Netherlands heart journal : monthly journal of the Netherlands Society of Cardiology and the Netherlands Heart Foundation·2016

Same author

Letter: gluten digestion in the stomach and duodenum by Aspergillus niger-derived enzyme - things to ponder. Authors' reply.

Alimentary pharmacology & therapeutics·2015

Same author

Editorial: enhancing gluten digestion in the stomach - a further help to minimise unintentional ingestion? Authors' reply.

Alimentary pharmacology & therapeutics·2015

Same author

Randomised clinical study: Aspergillus niger-derived enzyme digests gluten in the stomach of healthy volunteers.

Alimentary pharmacology & therapeutics·2015

Same author

Letter: lansoprazole consumption is more common in Japanese patients with collagenous colitis--authors' reply.

Alimentary pharmacology & therapeutics·2013

Same author

Alterations in mucosal neuropeptides in patients with irritable bowel syndrome and ulcerative colitis in remission: a role in pain symptom generation?

European journal of pain (London, England)·2013

Area of Science:

Gastroenterology
Clinical Diagnostics

Background:

Faecal elastase-1 test (FE-1) is recognized for ease of use and sensitivity in detecting exocrine pancreatic insufficiency.
Limited data exists on FE-1 specificity for diagnosing steatorrhoea.
This study aimed to assess the clinical utility of FE-1 in patients undergoing faecal fat determination.

Purpose of the Study:

Evaluate the clinical value of the faecal elastase-1 test (FE-1) in diagnosing steatorrhoea.
Determine the specificity of FE-1 in differentiating pancreatic from nonpancreatic causes of steatorrhoea.

Main Methods:

Collected 24-hour stool samples from 40 healthy controls and 119 patients (58 with chronic pancreatitis, 61 with nonpancreatic chronic diarrhoea).
Measured faecal fat excretion and FE-1 levels using a commercial ELISA kit with monoclonal antibodies.

Related Experiment Videos

Main Results:

The FE-1 test demonstrated good reproducibility.
FE-1 showed limited sensitivity for detecting exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (68%) and chronic pancreatitis (59%).
The test proved specific in differentiating pancreatic from nonpancreatic causes of steatorrhoea.

Conclusions:

Faecal elastase-1 testing has insufficient sensitivity for diagnosing chronic pancreatitis.
FE-1 serves as a simple, noninvasive tool for identifying the aetiology of steatorrhoea.