Lipase supplementation therapy: standards, alternatives, and perspectives

Abstract

Treatment of steatorrhea by lipase supplementation therapy has become more successful in the last decade due to better understanding of the physiology and pathophysiology of the digestive process. Porcine lipase has been the therapeutic standard for several decades and will continue to be the treatment of choice in pancreatic exocrine insufficiency. Modern therapeutic concepts recommend administration of 25,000-40,000 units of porcine lipase per meal using pH-sensitive pancreatin microspheres. In case of treatment failure, the dose should be increased, compliance should be checked, and other reasons for malabsorption should be excluded. Still, in most patients, lipid digestion cannot be completely normalized by current standard therapy, and future developments are needed for optimizing treatment. In this article, pathophysiologic characteristics of pancreatic exocrine insufficiency, prerequisites for use of alternative lipase sources as well as currently available lipases of nonporcine origin, and new developments are discussed. Current literature suggests that bovine lipase products present a theoretical alternative but play no major role in the western world. Fungal lipase has inferior properties compared with conventional products. Bacterial lipase products show promising potential and offer future therapeutic alternatives. Moreover, human pancreatic lipase gene transfer and application of bioengineered human gastric lipase appear on the horizon.