Plasma and urine levels of urinary trypsin inhibitor in patients with chronic liver diseases and hepatocellular carcinoma.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Because urinary trypsin inhibitor (UTI) is synthesized by hepatocytes and excreted into the urine, plasma and urine levels of UTI may alter in liver diseases. However, there are few reports on the changes in these levels in chronic liver diseases and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The aim of the present study was to evaluate the relationships between plasma and urine UTI levels and the severity of liver damage or progression of HCC in patients with chronic liver diseases and HCC.
METHODS: Plasma and urine UTI levels were measured by a newly developed enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in 16 patients with chronic hepatitis (CH), 19 patients with liver cirrhosis (LC) and 39 patients with HCC.
RESULTS: Plasma UTI level exhibited a significant positive correlation with the urine UTI level. Plasma and urine UTI levels significantly decreased in LC patients compared with those of normal controls. In contrast, the plasma UTI level in HCC patients was higher than that in LC patients, but there was no difference between the groups in the urine UTI level. Plasma and urine UTI levels in LC and HCC patients were significantly correlated with the degree of liver damage according to the Child-Pugh classification. Although neither the plasma nor urine level of UTI in HCC patients were related to the clinical stage of HCC, both levels were closely associated with the level of protein induced by vitamin K absence or antagonist-II.
CONCLUSIONS: The present findings indicate that the levels of plasma and urine UTI in patients with LC reflect the severity of liver damage. In HCC patients, these levels may also reflect progression of HCC, although further study is required. Copyright 2004 Blackwell Publishing Asia Pty Ltd