Clinical Significance of Serum Glutathione S-transferase Activity in Viral Hepatitis / 第三军医大学学报

ABSTRACT

The clnical significance of serum glutathione S-transferase (GST) activity determination was evaluated by parallel measurements of GST and GPT activity inthe seraof 192 patients with liver diseases and 721 patients without liver diseas es. TheGST activity was significantly increased in the former, but it hadn't anychanges in patients without liver diseases. The highest GST activity was found in patients with severe hepatitis. In contrast to survival, the GST activity was persistently increased in those patients died later,and there appeared a "GST/GPT dissociation phenomenon". Although GPT activity had been normal in the convalescent stage of patients with hepatitis, the GST level in most of them was still high and different degree of pathological changes were also present in liver biopsy. Our data suggested that GST activity measurements might be a more sensitive parameter of liver cell damage than usual GPT measurements, and it might be valuable in evaluation of prognosis of severe hepatitis, and differentiation of hepa-tocellular jaundice from obstructive and hemolytic jaundice.