The strip test for hypolactasia also works without ethanol

Detection of urinary galactose with a special test strip has been shown to work well with the lactose tolerance test with ethanol. In this study the strips were used in combination with a lactose load alone or with another alcohol, beta-pyridylcarbinol, and the results were compared with those of the urinary lactose tolerance test with ethanol (ULTTE) as the reference method. Sixty-nine patients were studied. With lactose alone the specificity was 83%, the sensitivity 88%, and the kappa coefficient 0.61. It is concluded that the strip test for hypolactasia works without ethanol with sufficient reliability for the daily clinical work of a general practitioner. Adding beta-pyridylcarbinol to the test does not markedly increase the validity of the test.