Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme (ACE)
- Also Known As:
- ACE
- Serum Angiotensin Converting Enzyme
- SACE

This page was fact checked by our expert Medical Review Board for accuracy and objectivity. Read more about our editorial policy and review process.
At a Glance
Why Get Tested?
To help diagnose and monitor sarcoidosis; to help differentiate this systemic condition from other disorders causing similar symptoms
When To Get Tested?
When you have granulomas that produce small bumps under the skin, a lingering cough, red watery eyes, and/or other symptoms suggestive of sarcoidosis; regularly when you have active sarcoidosis to monitor its course
Sample Required?
A blood sample drawn from a vein in your arm
Test Preparation Needed?
None
You may be able to find your test results on your laboratory’s website or patient portal. However, you are currently at Testing.com. You may have been directed here by your lab’s website in order to provide you with background information about the test(s) you had performed. You will need to return to your lab’s website or portal, or contact your healthcare practitioner in order to obtain your test results.
Testing.com is an award-winning patient education website offering information on laboratory tests. The content on the site, which has been reviewed by laboratory scientists and other medical professionals, provides general explanations of what results might mean for each test listed on the site, such as what a high or low value might suggest to your healthcare practitioner about your health or medical condition.
The reference ranges for your tests can be found on your laboratory report. They are typically found to the right of your results.
If you do not have your lab report, consult your healthcare provider or the laboratory that performed the test(s) to obtain the reference range.
Laboratory test results are not meaningful by themselves. Their meaning comes from comparison to reference ranges. Reference ranges are the values expected for a healthy person. They are sometimes called “normal” values. By comparing your test results with reference values, you and your healthcare provider can see if any of your test results fall outside the range of expected values. Values that are outside expected ranges can provide clues to help identify possible conditions or diseases.
While accuracy of laboratory testing has significantly evolved over the past few decades, some lab-to-lab variability can occur due to differences in testing equipment, chemical reagents, and techniques. This is a reason why so few reference ranges are provided on this site. It is important to know that you must use the range supplied by the laboratory that performed your test to evaluate whether your results are “within normal limits.”
For more information, please read the article Reference Ranges and What They Mean.
What is being tested?
Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) is an enzyme that helps regulate blood pressure. An increased blood level of ACE is sometimes found in sarcoidosis, a systemic disorder of unknown cause that often affects the lungs but may also affect many other body organs, including the eyes, skin, nerves, liver, and heart., This test measures the amount of ACE in the blood.
A classic feature of sarcoidosis is the development of granulomas, small tumor-like masses of immune and inflammatory cells and fibrous tissue that form nodules under the skin and in organs throughout the body. Granulomas change the structure of the tissues around them and, in sufficient numbers, they can cause damage and inflammation and may interfere with normal functions. The cells found at the outside borders of granulomas can produce increased amounts of ACE. The level of ACE in the blood may increase when sarcoidosis-related granulomas develop.
Common Questions
View Sources
Sources Used in Current Review
Dugdale, D. (Updated 2013 November 1). ACE blood test. MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003567.htm. Accessed January 2015.
Iannuzzi, M. and Sah, B. (Revised 2014 March). Sarcoidosis. The Merck Manual Professional Edition. [On-line information]. Available online through http://www.merckmanuals.com. Accessed January 2015.
(© 1995–2015). Angiotensin Converting Enzyme, Serum. Mayo Clinic Mayo Medical Laboratories [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.mayomedicallaboratories.com/test-catalog/Overview/8285. Accessed January 2015.
Heikal, N. and Wittwer, C. (Updated 2014 July). Sarcoidosis. ARUP Consult [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.arupconsult.com/Topics/Sarcoidosis.html?client_ID=LTD#tabs=0. Accessed January 2015.
Kamangar, N. et. al. (Updated 2014 October 31). Sarcoidosis. Medscape Drugs & Diseases [On-line information]. Available online at http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/301914-overview. Accessed January 2015.
Hadjiliadis, D. (Updated 2013 May 30). Sarcoidosis. MedlinePlus Medical Encylopedia [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000076.htm. Accessed January 2015.
Pagana, K. D., Pagana, T. J., and Pagana, T. N. (© 2015). Mosby’s Diagnostic & Laboratory Test Reference 12th Edition: Mosby, Inc., Saint Louis, MO. Pp 60-61.
Sources Used in Previous Reviews
Thomas, Clayton L., Editor (1997). Taber’s Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary. F.A. Davis Company, Philadelphia, PA [18th Edition].
Pagana, Kathleen D. & Pagana, Timothy J. (2001). Mosby’s Diagnostic and Laboratory Test Reference 5th Edition: Mosby, Inc., Saint Louis, MO.
Angiotensin Converting Enzyme. Marquette General Health System [On-line test catalog]. Available online at http://www.mgh.org/lab/CATALOG/TESTS/1685.HTM.
(2003). Angiotensin-converting Enzyme (ACE). LabCorp [On-line test information]. Available online at http://www.labcorp.com/datasets/labcorp/html/chapter/mono/sc002100.htm.
Angiotensin-converting enzyme test. Hendrick Health System AccessMed Health Information Library [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.ehendrick.org/healthy/000080.htm.
Angiotensin Converting Enzyme. ARUP [On-line test information]. Available online at http://www.aruplab.com/guides/clt/tests/clt_al58.jsp#1142066.
Sarcoidosis. Hendrick Health System AccessMed Health Information Library [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.ehendrick.org/healthy/.
Mayo Clinic Staff (2002 October 11). Sarcoidosis. MayoClinic.com [On-line information]. Available online through http://www.mayoclinic.com.
Milone, M. Updated (2002 March 14 Updated). ACE concentrations. MedlinePlus Health Information, Medical Encyclopedia [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003567.htm.
Belfer, M. and Stevens, R. W. (1998 December). Sarcoidosis: A Primary Care Review. American Family Physician [On-line journal]. Available online at http://www.aafp.org/afp/981200ap/belfer.html.
(2002 November, Updated). Sarcoidosis. Familydoctor.org [On-line information from AAFP]. Available online at http://familydoctor.org/handouts/320.html.
Stavrou, P. (1999). Ocular Sarcoidosis. Ocular Immunology & Uveitis Service at the Massachusetts Eye & Ear Infirmary Harvard Medical School Boston, MA [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.uveitis.org/Enhanced/MD_info/md_sarcoidosis.htm.
Pagana, Kathleen D. & Pagana, Timothy J. (© 2007). Mosby’s Diagnostic and Laboratory Test Reference 8th Edition: Mosby, Inc., Saint Louis, MO. Pp 66-67.
Clarke, W. and Dufour, D. R., Editors (2006). Contemporary Practice in Clinical Chemistry, AACC Press, Washington, DC. Pp 116-117.
Wu, A. (2006). Tietz Clinical Guide to Laboratory Tests, Fourth Edition. Saunders Elsevier, St. Louis, Missouri. Pp 376-377.
Schriber, A. (2007 November 12, Updated). ACE levels. MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003567.htm. Accessed on 1/30/08.
(© 2006-2008). Sarcoidosis – Angiotensin Converting Enzyme. ARUPConsult [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.arupconsult.com/Topics/PulmonaryDz/ACE.html. Accessed on 1/31/08.
Dugdale, D. (Updated 2009 November 15). ACE Levels. MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003567.htm. Accessed July 2011.
Kamangar, N. and Shorr, A. (Updated 2011 April 14). Sarcoidosis. Medscape Reference [On-line information]. Available online at http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/301914-overview. Accessed July 2011.
Grenache, D. and Roberts, W. (Updated 2010 October). Sarcoidosis. ARUP Consult [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.arupconsult.com/Topics/Sarcoidosis.html?client_ID=LTD. Accessed July 2011.
(© 1995-2011). Unit Code 8285: Angiotensin Converting Enzyme, Serum. Mayo Clinic Mayo Medical Laboratories [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.mayomedicallaboratories.com/test-catalog/Overview/8285. Accessed July 2011.
Pagana, K. D. & Pagana, T. J. (© 2011). Mosby’s Diagnostic and Laboratory Test Reference 10th Edition: Mosby, Inc., Saint Louis, MO. Pp 65-66.
Henry’s Clinical Diagnosis and Management by Laboratory Methods. 21st ed. McPherson R, Pincus M, eds. Philadelphia, PA: Saunders Elsevier: 2007 Pg 257.
Ask a Laboratory Scientist
