Ascitic fluid lipid profile and albumin level

Serum Ascites Albumin Gradient is the best single test for classifying ascites into portal hypertensive and non–portal hypertensive causes. Like Serum Ascites Albumin Gradient, Serum Ascites Lipid Gradient is also a subtraction of serum and ascitic fluid values of lipid fractions. In this comparative study Serum Ascites Albumin Gradient and Serum Ascites Lipid Gradient of 180 patients with ascites of different etiologies: 75 patients with cirrhosis, 15 patients with noncirrhotic portal hypertension, 45 patients with abdominal tuberculosis, 45 patients with intraabdominal malignancy were assayed. The study showed a statistically significant difference between the portal hypertension and nonportal hypertension group for both Serum Ascites Albumin Gradient and Serum Ascites Lipid Gradient (p<0.0001). The sensitivity, specificity of both were found to be comparable. In conclusion like Serum Ascites Albumin Gradient, Serum Ascites Lipid Gradient is also a useful parameter in differentiating high portal pressure ascites from low portal pressure ascites.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/bmrcb.v36i1.4656