By The Pawline veterinary teamVeterinary-reviewed by Alastair Greenway, BVM&S MRCVS · 25 July 2026
Lipase is the fat-digesting enzyme, measured on most standard chemistry panels. Traditional lipase is poorly specific for pancreatitis because other tissues contribute and kidney disease raises it — the newer DGGR method performs much better, and pancreatic lipase immunoreactivity is better still.
Lipase is the enzyme that breaks dietary fat into absorbable pieces. Most of it comes from the pancreas, which is why a blood lipase has been measured for decades as a pancreatitis test — and why that use has such a chequered history.
Lipase digests dietary fat. Traditional catalytic lipase is a poor pancreatitis test; the newer DGGR method performs considerably better.
The specificity problem
The traditional ("catalytic") lipase assay measures enzyme activity, and several tissues besides the pancreas produce lipases that the assay picks up — the stomach and liver among them. Worse, kidney disease raises lipase by reducing its clearance, and some medications (notably steroids) can too. The result is a test that rises in plenty of animals without pancreatitis, and occasionally fails to rise in animals that have it. For that reason, traditional lipase and amylase have largely been superseded.
Two better options now exist:
DGGR lipase — a newer substrate-based method available on many modern chemistry panels, which correlates far better with pancreatitis and performs comparably to the specific immunoassays in several studies. If your report says "DGGR", it is the more trustworthy version.
Pancreatic lipase immunoreactivity (Spec cPL / Spec fPL) — measures only pancreas-derived lipase immunologically, and is the reference blood test for pancreatitis.
So the practical question when you see a raised lipase is: which lipase was measured?
Reading a high result
A raised lipase raises the possibility of pancreatitis, but on the traditional assay it must be interpreted cautiously against the alternatives — especially kidney disease (check creatinine and SDMA), gastrointestinal disease, steroid treatment, and simply a non-fasted or lipaemic sample. A raised DGGR lipase carries more weight. In either case, confirmation with pancreatic lipase immunoreactivity, abdominal ultrasound and the clinical picture is what settles the question.
Reading a normal result
A normal lipase argues somewhat against pancreatitis but, on the traditional assay, not strongly — its sensitivity is imperfect. A normal DGGR lipase is more reassuring. As always, a strongly suggestive clinical picture justifies imaging regardless.
In chronic disease
Lipase has limited value as a monitoring marker, and where pancreatitis is being followed the specific immunoassay is preferred. Its main ongoing relevance is as a number that appears on routine panels and needs correct interpretation — particularly avoiding the trap of reading a kidney-driven elevation as pancreatic disease.
Cat vs dog
The specificity problems affect both species, and in cats traditional lipase is especially unreliable for diagnosing pancreatitis — one of the main reasons Spec fPL was developed. DGGR lipase has performed well in both dogs and cats in published comparisons. In each species, a raised traditional lipase should prompt the better test rather than a conclusion.
About the reference range
This page shows no range strip. Reference intervals differ substantially between the traditional and DGGR methods, and Pawline draws a band only where it holds a verified interval. Read your result against the range and method printed on your own report — and note which assay was used.
How lab-specific DGGR lipase really is, from published figures: Cornell University (Cobas 501) reports about 15–228 U/L (dog) and 7–23 U/L (cat); the University of Zurich (Kook 2014) uses roughly ≤108 U/L normal / 108–216 inconclusive / >216 increased in dogs; and Berne (Wolfer 2022) about 25–180 U/L (dog). Same method, three laboratories, three different intervals — which is exactly why the strip is left off and your own report's range, and the assay named on it, are what count.
What to do next
If lipase is raised, check which assay was run and consider the non-pancreatic explanations, kidney disease chief among them. If pancreatitis is genuinely suspected, ask your vet about pancreatic lipase immunoreactivity and abdominal ultrasound, which together carry far more diagnostic weight than a traditional lipase on its own.
This page is educational and is not a diagnosis. Lab results are interpreted in the full clinical context by your veterinary surgeon; a single value rarely tells the whole story.
