Pancreatic function assessment.

Abstract

Several non invasive tests are available to assess pancreatic function, but no one is routinely used in clinical practice to diagnose chronic pancreatitis, due to their poor sensitivity in diagnosing mild pancreatic insufficiency. (13)C breath tests share the same limits of the other non invasive functional tests, but the mixed triglyceride breath test seems to be useful in finding the correct dosage of enzyme substitutive therapy to prevent malnutrition in patients with known pancreatic insufficiency.