Indications directory

Basic evaluations:

Full blood count, ESR or CRP, sodium, potassium, calcium, total protein, creatinine, lipase, GOT, GPT, AP, gamma-GT, blood cultures on suspicion of invasive intestinal infection

Additional tests for etiological evaluation:

Stool culture and antigen-evidence

Small children (0-7 years):

Rotavirus, adenovirus, jejunal campylobacter, clostridium difficile, salmonella, Yersinia, staphylococcus, clostridium difficile

Adults:

Salmonella, campylobacter, Yersinia, aeromonas hydrophilia, adeno virus, rotavirus, norovirus, pathogen E. coli (EHEC), staphylococcus aureus, bacillus cereus (both have a short incubation time of 2-7 hours), clostridium difficile with toxin-evidence

Stool for parasites:

Worm eggs, lamblia- and ameba cysts, cryptosporidia, microsporidia etc.

Stool for blood (hemoccult or immunological)

Serology:

Yersinia, salmonella, campylobacter, rotavirus, HIV (consent required), ameba, hepatitis A, hepatitis E, also consider Hantavirus-infections (Hantaan, Puumula, Dobrova).

Pancreas insufficiency:

Elastase in stool (more likely chronic diarrhea)

Allergy:

Food allergy, allergen-specific IgE, IgG (minor meaningfulness), histamine-intolerance, diamine-oxidase

Medication anamnesis and toxicology:

CDT (on suspicion of alcoholism), arsen, mercury, chrome, iron, laxatives, antibiotics, L-thyroxin, H2-antagonists and others

Endocrinology:

TSH (on suspicion of hyperthyroidism), chromogranin A in the serum, gastrin and gastrin-stimulation test (on suspicion of Zollinger-Ellison syndrome, see function tests)

Celiac disease/sprue: Endomysium-antibodies, gliadin-antibodies in children

Function tests:

Xylose test (on suspicion of malabsorption in the proximal small intestine), lactose intolerance test (on suspicion of lactase-deficiency), pancreolauryl-test (on suspicion of pancreas insufficiency)

Please also refer to section “malabsorption”