What does elevated serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) indicate?
Disease description:
Today, when I went to the hospital early in the morning to collect my physical examination report, I was told that my serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) level is elevated. I’ve never encountered this situation before—could you please explain what this means?
Doctor's answer (1)
Dr. Huang Shengwei
Hello, an elevated serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) level generally indicates impaired liver function. ALT is normally present within hepatocytes; when liver cells are damaged, ALT is released into the bloodstream, resulting in elevated serum ALT levels. However, this is not absolute—other conditions, such as cardiac disease, renal disease, skeletal muscle disorders, and certain abnormal infections, may also cause elevated ALT levels. I hope this information is helpful to you. Wishing you good health!
