Clinical meaning of GGT activity in follow-up of patients with alcohol-related liver injury and cholestasis

• Published in: The Italian journal of gastroenterology Vol. 24; no. 4; p. 185
• Main Authors: Krastev, Z, Mateva, L, Danev, S, Nikolov, R
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Italy 01.05.1992
• Subjects: Cholestasis - blood; Cholestasis - enzymology; Cholestasis, Extrahepatic - blood; Cholestasis, Extrahepatic - enzymology; Follow-Up Studies; Gallstones - blood; Gallstones - enzymology; Gallstones - surgery; gamma-Glutamyltransferase - blood; Humans; Liver Cirrhosis, Alcoholic - blood; Liver Cirrhosis, Alcoholic - enzymology; Liver Diseases, Alcoholic - blood; Liver Diseases, Alcoholic - enzymology; Liver Diseases, Alcoholic - therapy; Pancreatitis - blood; Pancreatitis - enzymology; Pancreatitis - therapy; Sphincterotomy, Endoscopic; Temperance
• ISSN: 0392-0623

The dynamics of GGT was investigated in three groups of patients after removing some primary causes of GGT increase. Group A included 34 patients with alcohol-related liver disease, group B included 16 patients with alcoholic liver injury and cholestasis, caused by concomitant alcoholic pancreatitis and group C included 17 patients with extrahepatic cholestasis, caused by choledocholithiasis. Follow-up assays of GGT were performed on the 7th, 14th and 30th days. Our results showed that the dynamics of GGT was more rapid after removing the cause for cholestasis than in stopping alcohol consumption in patients with chronic liver diseases. On the 14th day more than a 50% decrease in GGT activity was noted in 20% of the patients from groups A and B and in almost all cases from group C. On the 30th day, the reference range of GGT was not attained by any of the patients with liver disease nor in five patients from group C. No significant correlation was found between the severity of liver damage and the extent of GGT increase at the beginning and at the end of the follow-up period.