Drugs that may cause an elevated GGT level include phenytoin, carbamazepine, and barbiturates such as phenobarbital. Use of many other prescription and non-prescription drugs, including non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs NSAIDs , lipid-lowering medications, antibiotics, histamine receptor blockers used to treat excess stomach acid production , anti-fungal agents, antidepressants, and hormones such as testosterone, can increase GGT levels.
Levels of GGT increase with age in women, but not in men, and are always somewhat higher in men than in women. Want to get this tested? Gamma GT. Veins and arteries vary in size from one person to another and from one side of the body to the other. Taking blood from some people may be more difficult than from others. Other risks associated with having blood drawn are slight but may include:.
Gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase GGTP, gamma-glutamyltransferase - blood. Laboratory Tests and Diagnostic Procedures. Pratt DS. Liver chemistry and function tests. Sleisenger and Fordtran's Gastrointestinal and Liver Disease. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier Saunders; chap A person will often need follow-up tests to find out the reasons for the elevated GGT levels. A doctor may order a GGT test as part of regular blood testing during a yearly physical examination, if a person is taking a medication that has potentially toxic effects on the liver, or if someone has symptoms of liver disease.
GGT levels may increase for many reasons, so a doctor will usually use the GGT test in conjunction with other tests for diagnosis. GGT levels are usually the first to rise when a person has a bile duct obstruction, making this the most sensitive liver enzyme test for detecting problems with the bile duct.
The GGT test is also part of a series of tests known as a liver panel, which checks the levels of other liver enzymes, such as alanine aminotransferase ALT , aspartate aminotransferase AST , alkaline phosphatase ALP , and bilirubin. Bone disease and liver or bile duct disease can lead to elevated ALP levels. Having a GGT test can distinguish between the two: a normal GGT level likely indicates a bone issue, while a high GGT level may signal a problem with the liver or bile ducts.
GGT levels tend to be higher in people who regularly drink heavily compared with people who drink in moderation or only drink heavily on occasion. Because of this, a doctor may measure GGT levels to test for acute or chronic alcohol abuse. Doctors may use the test to monitor alcohol use in someone who is receiving treatment for alcohol abuse disorder or hepatitis due to chronic alcohol use.
During the test, the healthcare professional will tie a band around the upper arm, clean the inner elbow thoroughly with an alcohol pad, and insert a small needle into the skin.
They will collect a small tube of blood. After the test, they will remove the needle and band and will apply pressure to the site to make sure any bleeding stops. As with any other blood test, the blood draw may cause minor, temporary discomfort, which will pass quickly. The healthcare professional will label the sample and send it to a lab for testing.
The lab should produce the results within a day or two, though it may take a little longer for the doctor to receive and interpret the results. Ascertaining whether observed elevations of alkaline phosphatase are due to skeletal disease normal gamma-glutamyltransferase: GGT or reflect the presence of hepatobiliary disease elevated GGT. Gamma-glutamyltransferase GGT is primarily present in kidney, liver, and pancreatic cells.
Small amounts are present in other tissues. Even though renal tissue has the highest level of GGT, the enzyme present in the serum appears to originate primarily from the hepatobiliary system, and GGT activity is elevated in any and all forms of liver disease.
It is highest in cases of intra- or posthepatic biliary obstruction, reaching levels some 5 to 30 times normal. GGT is more sensitive than alkaline phosphatase ALP , leucine aminopeptidase, aspartate transaminase, and alanine aminotransferase in detecting obstructive jaundice, cholangitis, and cholecystitis; its rise occurs earlier than with these other enzymes and persists longer.
Only modest elevations times normal occur in infectious hepatitis, and in this condition, GGT determinations are less useful diagnostically than are measurements of the transaminases. High elevations of GGT are also observed in patients with either primary or secondary metastatic neoplasms.
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