Alanine aminotransferase (ALAT)
Stomach and gut healthAlso known as: ALT, SGPT, serum glutamic pyruvic transaminase, Alanin aminotransferase
ALT is an enzyme mostly found in your liver — elevated levels in blood usually signal that liver cells have been damaged or irritated.
ALAT (Alanine Aminotransferase): An enzyme primarily found in liver cells. When liver cells are damaged, ALAT leaks into the bloodstream, making it a sensitive indicator of liver injury from various causes.
Why this matters
ALAT (Alanine Aminotransferase) acts as an early warning system for liver health. Elevations can signal conditions such as fatty liver disease, viral hepatitis, or medication-related liver stress before symptoms appear. Tracking ALAT helps guide early action through lifestyle measures like reducing alcohol intake, maintaining a healthy weight, exercising regularly, and eating a balanced diet.
How this connects to other biomarkers
- ALAT (also called ALT) is more specific to the liver than Aspartat-Aminotransferase (ASAT); an ASAT / ALAT ratio < 1 typically points to viral hepatitis or non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD/MASLD).
- Persistent ALAT elevation with elevated Liver fat fraction (%PDFF), abdominal obesity, and high HOMA-Index confirms metabolic-associated fatty liver disease.
- Use Fibrose-Score (FIB-4) alongside transaminases to estimate liver scarring.
How often should I test Alanine aminotransferase (ALAT)?
Most adults benefit from checking ALAT once a year as part of standard liver screening. If you're working on metabolic-associated liver disease through weight loss or dietary change, retest every three to six months.
At baseline / for screening: Once every 12 months from age 30 as part of a comprehensive panel.
When monitoring an intervention or change: Retest 3 to 6 months after a sustained lifestyle change for fatty liver, such as meaningful weight loss (5 to 10 percent of body weight), reducing alcohol, improving sleep, or shifting toward a Mediterranean-style diet. Retest 4 to 6 weeks after starting a hepatotoxic medication (statin, methotrexate, isoniazid, certain antifungals) to confirm tolerance. If a result was meaningfully elevated, your clinician guides the follow-up.
Note: Intense unaccustomed exercise (especially eccentric loading) can raise ALAT for 5 to 7 days. Wait this long with normal activity before retesting if a result looks unexpectedly high.
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