normal is best defined as a setting on a washer or dryer - especially when referring to alts and asts - thats why the range is so great
thanks mine was up this year but not much since i am still infested, i get nervous real easy!
Oooopppssss! Mike you are correct!
I guess it is a typo on WebMD's site. That is odd.(?)
http://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/aspartate-aminotransferase-ast?page=2
Looking at my own labs from UCSF I have norm for AST 16-41 U/L.
I see a Quest Lab reference for us +50 year old Males = 10-35 U/L
20 - 44 year old Females = 10-30 U/L (nothing above 44 years old? Stays the same?)
Quest
Clinical Significance:
"AST IS WIDELY DISTRIBUTED THROUGHOUT THE TISSUES WITH SIGNIFICANT AMOUNTS BEING IN THE HEART AND LIVER. LESSER AMOUNTS ARE ALSO FOUND IN SKELETAL MUSCLES, KIDNEYS, PANCREAS, SPLEEN, LUNGS, AND BRAIN. INJURY TO THESE TISSUES RESULTS IN THE RELEASE OF THE AST ENZYME TO
GENERAL CIRCULATION. IN MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION, SERUM AST MAY BEGIN TO RISE WITHIN 6-8 HOURS AFTER ONSET, PEAK WITHIN TWO DAYS AND RETURN TO NORMAL BY THE FOURTH OR FIFTH DAY POST INFARCTION. AN INCREASE IN SERUM AST IS ALSO FOUND WITH HEPATITIS, LIVER NECROSIS, CIRRHOSIS, AND
LIVER METASTASIS."
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WebMD:
Slightly high levels of AST may be caused by:
Fatty deposits in the liver.
Alcohol abuse.
An overdose of acetaminophen (Tylenol). People who drink alcohol and take a lot of acetaminophen (such as Tylenol) can also have high AST blood levels.
Many medicines, such as statins, antibiotics, chemotherapy, aspirin, narcotics, and barbiturates.
AST levels may be high when a disease first develops, which is often when tissue damage is most severe. Decreasing levels of AST in the blood may be a sign of recovery from the disease or injury.
Many other conditions, including severe burns, traumatic injuries, pulmonary embolism, or heat exhaustion and heatstroke, and ingestion of poisonous mushrooms may cause elevated AST levels.
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Time to hit the lactulose... ;-)
Hector
Never seen AST upper limit of 20 either , what lab has that ?
Must be a super healthy population where they are with very
low alcohol or prescription drug usage I would imagine.
I've see a lot of lab sheets from different labs but I have never seen any reference range for male AST as narrow as 14 - 20 U/L. I'm looking at a Quest sheet and the reference range for AST is 10 - 35 U/L.
The Quest ref range for ALT is 9 - 60 U/L
I just found this at Medicine net.
The normal range of values for AST (SGOT) is from 5 to 40 units per liter of serum (the liquid part of the blood).
The normal range of values for ALT (SGPT) is from 7 to 56 units per liter of serum.
Those aren't the same as Quest but they're in the ball park.
I know different labs have different reference range but an AST range of of 14 - 20 seems very narrow.
Are you sure that's correct?
Mike
The norm may vary depending on the lab that that was used. They usually post norm values next to the result numbers.
From WebMD
http://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/aspartate-aminotransferase-ast
"Normal
The normal values listed here-called a reference range-are just a guide. These ranges vary from lab to lab, and your lab may have a different range for what’s normal. Your lab report should contain the range your lab uses. Also, your doctor will evaluate your results based on your health and other factors. This means that a value that falls outside the normal values listed here may still be normal for you or your lab.
Aspartate aminotransferase (AST)
Males:
14-20 units per liter (U/L) or 0.23-0.33 microkats per liter (mckat/L)
Females:
10-36 U/L or 0.17-0.60 mckat/L
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http://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/alanine-aminotransferase-alt
Alanine aminotransferase
Males:
10-40 units per liter (U/L) or 0.17-0.68 microkats per liter (mckat/L)
Females:
7-35 U/L or 0.12-0.60 mckat/L"
Hope this helps.
Hector