Diagnosis of pancreatic insufficiency | Pancreatic insufficiency – You should know that!

Diagnosis of pancreatic insufficiency

The symptoms described by the patient and the physical examination usually provide the specialist with good indications for the diagnosis of pancreatic weakness. However, a clear test result is needed to confirm the suspicion. The stool sample provides this with relatively high reliability and relatively little effort.

This is because it measures the concentration of two important digestive enzymes which are normally produced by the pancreas and released into the intestine. If the measured concentration is below the normal range, this can be interpreted as a sign of reduced functionality of the organ, i.e. pancreatic weakness. In individual cases, a secretin-pancreozyme test can be supplemented to confirm the test result (see below).

The standard test for the detection of pancreatic insufficiency consists of determining the concentration of chymotrypsin and elastase-1 in a stool sample from the patient. These are digestive enzymes that are produced in the pancreas and then released into the intestines to break down the nutrients contained in food. A reduced concentration of these enzymes in the stool therefore indicates pancreatic weakness.

Normally, this test provides sufficiently reliable results, but occasionally an additional secretin-pancreozyme test may be necessary. These enzymes are stimulators of production processes in the pancreas. They are administered to the patient before the test and then a probe is inserted into the intestine to measure the maximum secretion rate of the organ.