The LACTOFERRIN CHEK® is an ELISA for the qualitative detection of elevated levels of lactoferrin, a marker for fecal leukocytes and an indicator of intestinal inflammation. The test can be used as an in vitro diagnostic aid to identify patients with active inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and rule out those with active irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), which is non-inflammatory.
IBD, which is a condition of chronic inflammation, consists of ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. Both of these diseases result in elevated fecal lactoferrin. As a result, patients with these diseases test positive in the LACTOFERRIN CHEK® test.
In patients with active IBS, the intestine appears normal upon endoscopic examination and there is no indication of inflammation. As a result, IBS patients test negative in the LACTOFERRIN CHEK® test.
