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Pancreatitis

Pancreatitis At A Glance

Understanding Chronic Pancreatitis

If injury to the pancreas continues, chronic pancreatitis may develop. Chronic pancreatitis occurs when digestive enzymes attack and destroy the pancreas and nearby tissues, causing scarring and pain. The usual cause of chronic pancreatitis is many years of alcohol abuse, but the chronic form may also be triggered by only one acute attack, especially if the pancreatic ducts are damaged. The damaged ducts cause the pancreas to become inflamed, tissue to be destroyed, and scar tissue to develop.


More on Pancreatitis

  • Pancreatitis has two forms: acute and chronic
  • Common causes of pancreatitis are gallstones or alcohol abuse.
  • Sometimes no cause for pancreatitis can be found.
  • Symptoms of acute pancreatitis include pain in the abdomen, nausea, vomiting, fever, and a rapid pulse.

What is pancreatitis?

Pancreatitis is an inflammation of the pancreas. The pancreas is a large gland behind the stomach and close to the duodenum. The duodenum is the upper part of the small intestine. The pancreas secretes digestive enzymes into the small intestine through a tube called the pancreatic duct. These enzymes help digest fats, proteins, and carbohydrates in food. The pancreas also releases the hormones insulin and glucagon into the bloodstream. These hormones help the body use the glucose it takes from food for energy.

Normally, digestive enzymes do not become active until they reach the small intestine, where they begin digesting food. But if these enzymes become active inside the pancreas, they start "digesting" the pancreas itself.

Acute pancreatitis occurs suddenly and lasts for a short period of time and usually resolves. Chronic pancreatitis does not resolve itself and results in a slow destruction of the pancreas. Either form can cause serious complications. In severe cases, bleeding, tissue damage, and infection may occur. Pseudocysts, accumulations of fluid and tissue debris, may also develop. And enzymes and toxins may enter the bloodstream, injuring the heart, lungs, and kidneys, or other organs.

Illustration of the Pancreas

What are the causes of acute pancreatitis?

Some people have more than one attack and recover completely after each, but acute pancreatitis can be a severe, life-threatening illness with many complications. About 80,000 cases occur in the United States each year; some 20 percent of them are severe. Acute pancreatitis occurs more often in men than women.

Acute pancreatitis is usually caused by gallstones or by drinking too much alcohol, but these aren't the only causes. If alcohol use and gallstones are ruled out, other possible causes of pancreatitis should be carefully examined so that appropriate treatment-if available-can begin.



Next: What are the symptoms of acute pancreatitis? »

Pancreatitis - Describe Your Experience

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Pancreatitis

What is a choledochal cyst?

Bile that is produced in the liver flows through increasingly larger channels (ducts) within the liver and finally into even larger ducts that leave the liver, pass through the substance of the pancreas, and then empty into the duodenum.

A choledochal cyst is a cyst (hollow outpouching) of the bile ducts. Choledochal cysts have been classified into several different types depending on where they are located and whether they can be seen as separate structures from the ducts (diverticulum-like); or whether they can be seen as a localized dilation (enlargement) of the ducts. Choledochal cysts are rare, occurring in less than 1% of individuals. The cause of choledochal cysts is unknown, but they are congenital, that is, present from birth, and, therefore, represent developmental abnormalities of the bile ducts in the fetus.

What are the symptoms and complications of choledochal cysts?/h...

Read the Choledochal Cysts article »











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