Background: Although 24-hour urinary copper excretion is valuable for diagnosis of Wilson's disease, accurate, timed collection entails practical difficulties. This study aimed to investigate the feasibility of morning urinary copper/creatinine or copper/zinc ratio as replacement parameter for diagnosing Wilson's disease.

Methods: Five random urinary samples collected during 24 hours from two inpatients were used to estimate the consistency of urinary copper/creatinine and copper/zinc ratios. The correlation of the ratios with 24-hour urinary copper excretion was studied in 15 patients with liver diseases. The diagnostic value of morning urinary copper/zinc ratio was further studied in 9 children with Wilson's disease and 22 children with other liver diseases.

Results: The coefficients of variation of urinary copper/creatinine and copper/zinc ratios during 24 hours were 12.5% and 9.3% respectively. The morning urinary copper/creatinine ratio, copper/zinc ratio, and 24-hour urinary copper excretion were correlated well. The area under receiver-operating characteristic curve was comparable between the morning urinary copper/zinc ratio and 24-hour urinary copper excretion (0.983 vs. 0.977).

Conclusion: Morning urinary copper/zinc ratio seems to be a promising parameter in replacement of 24-hour urinary copper excretion for diagnosis of Wilson's disease.

Key words: children; urinary copper/zinc ratio; Wilson's disease; 24-hour urinary copper excretion

                   World J Pediatr 2010;6(2):148-153