Endotoxemia in liver diseases: Detection by a quantitative assay using chromogenic substrate with perchloric acid pretreatment

With a quantitative blood endotoxin assay using a chromogenic substrate with a perchloric acid pretreatment (PCA-LCT), endotoxemia in various liver diseases was studied. With PCA-LCT, recovery of added endotoxin in human plasma was nearly 90%, as evidenced by an intra- and inter-assay coefficients of variation of 5.7% and 11%, respectively. Because the recovery of endotoxin was not affected in severely icteric plasmas, PCA-LCT proved to be applicable to patients with liver diseases where various degree of jaundice exist. In none of the plasmas from patients with chronic hepatitis, acute hepatitis without hepatic failure or liver cirrhosis without ascites did the endotoxin level exceed the normal range of less than 5 pg/ml. With the presence of ascites, however, endotoxemia became detectable, but at low levels and not in all cases. At the stage of hepatic failure complicated with renal failure or disseminated intravascular coagulation, endotoxemia was more frequent and endotoxin concentration greater. It is uncertain, at present, whether endotoxemia itself is deteriorating factor in hepatic failure or is merely concomitant phenomenon resulting from Kupffer cell failure.