[Amylase/creatinine clearance in the differential diagnosis of acute pancreatitis]

In the Department of Gastroenterology of "El Centro Médico La Raza, I.M.S.S.", three groups of 20 patients were studied: group I with acute pancreatitis; group II with acute abdomen without pancreatic pathology, in both groups the diagnosis was demonstrated surgically or in necropsy; group III was formed by 20 normal voluntary persons, and served as control. A 4 per cent amilase/creatinine clearence index was considered as a high normal value. The diagnosis accuracy in group I was 90 per cent. In group II there was five false positive results, in 80 per cent of the cases the results of the amilase/creatinine clearence index was found within normal limits. The difference between group I and group III was significant (P less than 0.002). The difference between group I and group II was also significant (P less than 0.05). There was no significant difference between group II and group III. The amilase/creatinine clearence index has the advantage that it can be obtained with only one blood and urine samples taken simultaneously. We concluded that amilase/creatine clearence index is useful for the differential diagnosis in acute pancreatitis and that is probably due to an alteration in the tubular renal reabsorption.