Test guide
Stool Elastase Test
A stool elastase test measures the amount of elastase in your stool (poop). Elastase is a type of digestive enzyme, a protein that speeds up certain chemical reactions in your body. The pancreas, a gland that sits behind your stomach, makes these digestive enzymes to help your body break down food and absorb nutrients. Your body can then use these nutrients for energy, growth, and repairing cells.
What it is for
A stool elastase test is used to help check for exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI) in people with abdominal (belly) pain and other digestive symptoms that don't have a known cause. This test is better at finding severe EPI than it is at finding moderate cases. Because of this, a stool elastase test can't completely rule out EPI. A health care provider may also use a stool elastase test to monitor how well the pancreas is working in people with conditions that can cause EPI. Source: MedlinePlus, National Library of Medicine. Medical test information is public domain. Source identity and definition checked automatically on 2026-10-18. No individual clinical interpretation or human reviewer is asserted.
Limitations
Reference intervals and interpretation depend on the laboratory, specimen, method and clinical context. This source definition is educational information; it does not establish a diagnosis, product approval or suitability for an individual.
Also known as
- pancreatic elastase, fecal pancreatic elastase, fecal elastase, FE-1, EL-1, PE-1, PE stool
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