Utility of point-of-care urine trypsinogen dipstick test for diagnosing acute pancreatitis in an emergency unit

A point-of-care diagnostic test for acute pancreatitis could help in early triage and management of this condition. Urine trypsinogen dipstick test (UTDT) was performed in consecutive cases suspected to have acute pancreatitis and diagnostic accuracy calculated. Of 187 patients, 90 were have acute pancreatitis and UTDT was positive in 61 (67.7%). In the 97 non pancreatitis cases, UTDT was positive in nine (9.3%). The sensitivity and specificity of UTDT for acute pancreatitis was 67.8% and 90.7%, respectively. In patients presenting within 3 days of abdominal pain, sensitivity and specificity were 72.7% and 91.8%, respectively. While offering the possibility of a point of care diagnosis, the low sensitivity of UTDT could be a concern with its routine use.