A pancreatic enzyme used to assess the pancreas and digestion.
Pancreatic amylase is a form of the enzyme amylase made specifically by your pancreas. Amylase breaks down starches and carbohydrates into simple sugars during digestion. Your body also makes a salivary form, and this test measures only the pancreatic part.
Measuring the pancreatic fraction gives a clearer signal of pancreatic health than total amylase, which mixes both sources.
Pancreatic amylase rises when the pancreas is inflamed or injured, as in acute pancreatitis. Because it excludes the salivary form, it is more specific to the pancreas than total amylase, which can rise from salivary gland problems too.
It is often measured alongside lipase, which is even more specific and stays raised longer. Together they help confirm a pancreatic cause.
Aniva reads your result against research-backed ranges, not just the lab's wide normal. The reference shown below is specific to this biomarker.
Adult guidance values (guidance only, vary by lab and method):
| Category | Pancreatic amylase |
|---|---|
| Normal | roughly 13 to 53 U/L |
| Raised | above the lab upper limit |
Levels three or more times the upper limit suggest acute pancreatitis.
You learn whether the pancreatic part of your amylase is normal or raised, a focused signal of pancreatic health. A markedly high result, usually with abdominal pain, points to pancreatic inflammation and needs prompt medical attention.
Kidney impairment can raise amylase. Some medications and certain abdominal conditions can also raise it. Rarely, a harmless bound form called macroamylasemia raises the value without disease. Haemolysis can interfere with some assays.
Best read alongside lipase and, where relevant, abdominal imaging and clinical symptoms.
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