Urinary trypsinogen-2 dipstick in acute pancreatitis

Area of Science:

• Gastroenterology
• Clinical Diagnostics
• Biomarker Research

Background:

• Early diagnosis and treatment of acute pancreatitis (AP) are crucial for patient outcomes.
• Urinary trypsinogen-2 is a potential diagnostic marker for AP, but existing studies on the urinary trypsinogen-2 dipstick test (UTDT) yield inconsistent results.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the clinical utility of the UTDT for diagnosing apparent first attacks of AP in routine practice.
• To assess the sensitivity and specificity of the UTDT compared to standard diagnostic methods.

Main Methods:

• The study included 75 patients with AP (defined by >3-fold increase in plasma amylase) and 34 controls with other causes of acute abdominal pain.
• The UTDT was used to test urine samples from all participants.

Main Results:

• The UTDT demonstrated a sensitivity of 77% (95% CI: 66%-86%) in AP patients, with sensitivity reaching 87% in severe cases.
• Specificity was high at 97% (95% CI: 84%-99.9%), with 33 out of 34 controls testing negative.

Conclusions:

• The UTDT exhibits high specificity but limited sensitivity for diagnosing AP.
• The UTDT is not recommended as a replacement for plasma amylase testing in the initial diagnosis of AP.
• However, the UTDT shows potential as a rapid screening tool for early detection of AP in clinical settings.