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Blood Test Done. Found Elevated Alkaline Phosphatase Level. Should I Be Concerned?
Posted on
Wed, 24 Apr 2013
Medically reviewed by
Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team
Wed, 24 Apr 2013
Answered on
Fri, 17 May 2013
Last reviewed on
Question : Thank you. I just received some blood results from a health fair and my alkaline phosphatase tested at 137. Is this something I should be concerned about?
Hello and welcome to XXXXXXX
Thank you for writing to us.
Alkaline phosphate (ALP) is a parameter used to check on the liver and/or the bone. When we have an increased ALP, the possible conditions could be:
1. Liver condition: When there are symptoms relating to a possible liver condition, then, along with the ALP we also look for any abnormalities in parameters like alanine aminotransferase(ALT), aspartate aminotransferase(AST) and bilirubin. An abnormality in these parameters, indicates a liver condition. This could be anything from an infection to a tumor. Thus further investigation will be required
2. Bone condition: If a bone condition is suspected then we will have to look in to parameters like calcium and phosphorus. If these parameters are abnormal, this points towards a bone condition resulting from increased bone activity. This could again range from a disease to tumors
Please also note that in rare cases when only the ALP is raised, the possible causes could be:
-Healing bone injuries (eg. fractures)
-Pregnancy
-Medication (eg. anti-epileptics, etc.)
and a few other conditions.
I would thus request you to first look into the other parameters mentioned above, and then consult your doctor for a follow up on the elevated ALP levels, in order to rule this harmless.
I hope you found my response helpful and informative. Do write back to me for any further clarifications, or you could rate my answers after closing this discussion.
Best wishes.
Thank you for writing to us.
Alkaline phosphate (ALP) is a parameter used to check on the liver and/or the bone. When we have an increased ALP, the possible conditions could be:
1. Liver condition: When there are symptoms relating to a possible liver condition, then, along with the ALP we also look for any abnormalities in parameters like alanine aminotransferase(ALT), aspartate aminotransferase(AST) and bilirubin. An abnormality in these parameters, indicates a liver condition. This could be anything from an infection to a tumor. Thus further investigation will be required
2. Bone condition: If a bone condition is suspected then we will have to look in to parameters like calcium and phosphorus. If these parameters are abnormal, this points towards a bone condition resulting from increased bone activity. This could again range from a disease to tumors
Please also note that in rare cases when only the ALP is raised, the possible causes could be:
-Healing bone injuries (eg. fractures)
-Pregnancy
-Medication (eg. anti-epileptics, etc.)
and a few other conditions.
I would thus request you to first look into the other parameters mentioned above, and then consult your doctor for a follow up on the elevated ALP levels, in order to rule this harmless.
I hope you found my response helpful and informative. Do write back to me for any further clarifications, or you could rate my answers after closing this discussion.
Best wishes.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Answered by
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