The utilization of an index for serum globulin compensation in diseases associated with decreased serum albumin.

The albumin globulin ratio (A/G ratio) is meant to represent the ratio of alterations in serum proteins, since, in liver disease, globulins (G) rise following serum albumin (SA) decrease. pathophysiological value, its' use has been limited. Alternatively, we have developed an index, the globulin compensation index (GCI) to measure the changes in serum globulins when albumin is decreased. The index is calculated as follows: G - 25 / 35 - SA. The GCI has been tested using retrospective patients' data from the Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia. Analysis of the data shows that the GCI may be of potential value in showing the actual serum protein status, especially in cases where globulins are decreased along with albumin. Furthermore, globulin rise in cases with reduced albumin was found in 72.3% of cases of hepatic diseases, whereas this finding occurred in up to 32.3% of cases of non-hepatic, systemic diseases.