Assessment of appropriate use of amylase and lipase testing in the diagnosis of acute pancreatitis at an academic teaching hospital.

Objective: Despite evidence-based guidelines stating that lipase alone should be used in the diagnosis of suspected acute pancreatitis, health care providers continue to order amylase or amylase and lipase together. The purpose of this study was to assess the utilization of appropriate laboratory testing related to the diagnosis of acute pancreatitis.

Methods: The study used a retrospective cross-sectional design.