Cerebrospinal fluid enzymes in neurological diseases

The activities of adenylate kinase, creatine kinase and lactate dehydrogenase were measured in cerebrospinal fluid and serum from 127 patients admitted to the Department of Neurology. All cerebrospinal fluid samples with hemoglobin greater than 1 mg/l were excluded. Upper reference limits for the enzyme determinations were established, using samples from patients without objective criteria of organic involvement of the nervous system. High enzyme activities did not correlate to any particular group of diseases and were also found in patients without organic brain diseases. We conclude that determination of the three enzymes in cerebrospinal fluid is of limited value in the diagnosis of neurological diseases.