A NEW TEST OF PANCREATIC FUNCTION BASED ON STARCH TOLERANCE

Abstract
A new test of pancreatic function consists of giving 100 g of "soluble starch" suspended in water which has just ceased boiling. This is followed by a blood sugar curve. The greatest rise in blood sugar is compared to that after giving 100 g of glucose. In 27 normal controls the mean rise in blood sugar after glucose was 14% greater than that after starch, whereas in 23 patients with chronic disease of the pancreas it was 234% greater. In 5 patients having diffuse carcinoma of the pancreas, the mean rise was 342% higher after glucose. The response was definitely abnormal in 87% of 23 patients with chronic pancreatic disease and in 60% of 10 patients with suspected pancreatic disease. Gelatin tolerance was determined in the same patients by a curve of amino-acid N in the blood. This determination was not helpful in the diagnosis of pancreatic disease.