DIAGNOSTIC-VALUE OF SERUM LACTATE-DEHYDROGENASE ISOENZYME AND AMINO-ACID PATTERNS IN SEVERAL SCHISTOSOMAL AND NONSCHISTOSOMAL DISORDERS AS COMPARED TO OTHER BIOCHEMICAL PARAMETERS

Serum lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) isoenzyme and amino acid (a.a) patte rns were evaluated in comparison to several other biochemical paramete rs for liver and renal function with the objective of clarifying the d ifferential diagnosis of hepatic disorders and predicting the outcome of schistosomal infection in Egyptian patients. Patients examined incl uded those with complicated hepatic disorders and others with differen t stages of schistosomal infestation, hepatoma or bladder cancer, in a ddition to a normal control group. Several biochemical parameters appe ared to be useful in establishing consistent differences or similariti es between the studied groups. Examples are; elevated serum AST/ALT ra tio and methionine content in chronic schistosomiasis, elevated serum urea/creatinine ratio and leucine content in all schistosomal patients and extremely high levels of N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase (NAG) in the urine of non-schistosomal bladder cancer patients. In addition, c haracteristic LDH isoenzyme profiles distinguish between the studied g roups, in particular separating chronic schistosomiasis from schistoso mal bladder cancer and hepatoma from other hepatic disorders.