Brief Reports
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2003. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Oct 15, 2003; 9(10): 2322-2324
Published online Oct 15, 2003. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v9.i10.2322
Healthy ranges of serum alanine aminotransferase levels in Iranian blood donors
Mehdi Mohamadnejad, Akram Pourshams, Reza Malekzadeh, Ashraf Mohamadkhani, Afsaneh Rajabiani, Ali Ali Asgari, Seyed Meysam Alimohamadi, Hadi Razjooyan, Mansooreh Mamar-Abadi
Mehdi Mohamadnejad, Akram Pourshams, Reza Malekzadeh, Ashraf Mohamadkhani, Ali Ali Asgari, Seyed Meysam Alimohamadi, Hadi Razjooyan, Mansooreh Mamar-Abadi, Digestive Disease Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Afsaneh Rajabiani, Department of Pathology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Author contributions: All authors contributed equally to the work.
Correspondence to: Reza Malekzadeh, Digestive Disease Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Shariati Hospital, North Kargar Avenue Tehran 14114, Iran. malek@ams.ac.ir
Telephone: +98-21-8012992 Fax: +98-21-2253635
Received: May 13, 2003
Revised: July 13, 2003
Accepted: July 20, 2003
Published online: October 15, 2003
Abstract

AIM: The healthy ranges for serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels are less well studied. The aim of this study was to define the upper limit of normal (ULN) for serum ALT levels, and to assess factors associated with serum ALT activity in apparently healthy blood donors.

METHODS: A total of 1939 blood donors were included. ALT measurements were performed for all cases using the same laboratory method. Healthy ranges for ALT levels were computed from the population at the lowest risk for liver disease. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to evaluate associations between clinical factors and ALT levels.

RESULTS: Serum ALT activity was independently associated with body mass index (BMI) and male gender, but not associated with age. Association of ALT with BMI was more prominent in males than in females. Upper limit of normal for non-overweight women (BMI of less than 25) was 34 U/L, and for non-overweight men was 40 U/L.

CONCLUSION: Serum ALT is strongly associated with sex and BMI. The normal range of ALT should be defined for male and female separately.

Keywords: $[Keywords]