Table 3. Comparison of clinical chemistry reference intervals obtained in this study with other African studies and these of the United States.
| Parameters | Sex | Present study | Kenya [11] | Tanzania [14] | Nigeria [27] | Ghana [13] | Uganda [10] | Textbook [25, 26] | USA [24] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ALT (U/L) | C | 11–48 | 9.6–52 | 8–48 | NA | 7–51 | 6.6–42.8 | 0–35 | |
| M | 14–49 | 10.8–53.9 | 9–55 | 17.3–48.4 | 8–54 | 7.2–43.3 | 0–45 | NA | |
| F | 7.9–48 | 8.6–47 | 7–45 | 19–38 | 6–51 | 5.3–39.9 | 0–34 | NA | |
| AST (U/L) | C | 16–60 | 13.8–42.3 | 14–48 | NA | 14–51 | 12.3–34.8 | 0–35 | |
| M | 19–63 | 14.9–45.3 | 15–53 | 26–49.4 | 17–60 | 13.2–35.9 | 0–35 | NA | |
| F | 16–59 | 13.1–38.1 | 14–35 | 22–58.4 | 13–48 | 11.4–28.8 | 0–31 | NA | |
| ALP (U/L) | C | 53–342 | NA | 45–158 | NA | 85–241 | 44–151 | 30–120 | |
| M | 55–343 | NA | 45–170 | NA | 101–355 | 42–159 | 53–128 | NA | |
| F | 50–326 | NA | 45–155 | NA | 82–293 | 47–160 | 42–98 | NA | |
| Total protein (g/dl) | C | 5.4–8.9 | NA | 6.6–8.7 | NA | 5.1–8.7 | 6.6–8.9 | 6.3–8.3 | 5.5–8.0 |
| M | 5.5–8.1 | NA | 6.7–8.5 | NA | 4.7–8.6 | 6.5–8.9 | NA | ||
| F | 5.2–9.0 | NA | 6.6–8.6 | NA | 5.5–8.7 | 6.8–9.0 | NA | ||
| Total bilirubin (mg/dl) | C | 0.1–1.23 | 0.29–2.33 | 0.3–2.48 | NA | 0.17–1.51 | 0.4–2.5 | 0.2–1.0 | 0.3–1.0 |
| M | 0.1–1.3 | 0.33–2.51 | 0.35–2.44 | 0.2–1.0 | 0.22–1.87 | 0.4–2.6 | NA | ||
| F | 0.1–1.2 | 0.26–1.57 | 0.26–1.83 | 0.02–0.62 | 0.16–1.56 | 0.3–1.9 | NA | ||
| Glucose (mg/dl) | C | 60–125 | NA | 52.6–94.1 | NA | 64.8–115.2 | NA | 74–106 | 75.6–115.2 |
| M | 65–126 | NA | 51.8–95.4 | 66.6–142.2 | 63.0–113.4 | NA | NA | ||
| F | 60–119 | NA | 54.0–91.1 | 79.2–172.9 | 66.6–118.0 | NA | NA | ||
| Total cholesterol (mg/dl) | C | 69–213 | NA | 95.5–213.8 | NA | 77.3–208.1 | 91–233 | 140–200 | <200 |
| M | 97–208 | NA | 89.7–219.3 | 123.7–205 | 69.6–193.3 | 90–235 | NA | ||
| F | 69–216 | NA | 109–212.7 | 120–216.6 | 81.2–216.6 | 100–230 | NA | ||
| Triglycerides (mg/dl) | C | 46–207 | NA | 34.5–255.1 | NA | 35.4–194.9 | 39–281 | 65–157 | <160 |
| M | 44–220 | NA | 34.5–266.6 | 62–194.9 | 35.4–194.9 | 39–299 | NA | ||
| F | 46–207 | NA | 33.7–193.1 | 53.1–186 | 35.4–186 | 34–206 | NA | ||
| Creatinine (mg/dl) | C | 0.3–1.2 | NA | 0.47–1.02 | NA | 0.55–1.33 | 0.5–1.2 | <1.5 | |
| M | 0.4–1.3 | 0.7–1.2 | 0.54–1.09 | 0.86–1.26 | 0.63–1.35 | 0.6–1.2 | 0.9–1.3 | NA | |
| F | 0.3–1.11 | 0.58–1.03 | 0.45–0.92 | 0.71–1.33 | 0.53–1.24 | 0.5–0.9 | 0.6–1.1 | NA | |
| Urea (mg/dl) | C | 9.5–46.3 | NA | 9.1–29.5 | NA | 5.4–34.2 | 9.9–33.2 | 12.6–42.6 | 21.4–42.9 |
| M | 13.0–47.1 | NA | 9.3–29.8 | 13.2–28.8 | 5.4–37.2 | 10.1–33.9 | NA | ||
| F | 8.0–41.5 | NA | 8.8–27.4 | 15.0–34.8 | 5.4–32.4 | 9.4–30.2 | NA |
ALT: alanine aminotransferase; ALP: alkaline phosphatase; AST: aspartate aminotransferase; C: combined for both males and females; F: females; M: males; mg/dl: milligram per deciliter; NA: not available; U/L: units per liter