Knowledge acquired from Clinical Guidelines on the Diagnosis and Treatment of Acute Pancreatitis by attending physicians and residents in hospitals in Veracruz

Abstract

IntroductionClinical practice guidelines on the diagnosis and treatment of acute pancreatitis (CPGDTAP) have been designed in an effort to reduce the morbidity and mortality of that severe disease. AimTo identify the knowledge acquired from CPGDTAP in hospitals in Veracruz. Materials and methodsA descriptive, observational, multicenter study was conducted at four hospitals in Veracruz, through the application of a survey to evaluate the knowledge of attending physicians and residents that treat patients with acute pancreatitis. Descriptive statistics were employed to analyze the results. ResultsA total of 74 physicians were surveyed, 55.41% of whom were attending physicians and 44.59% of whom were resident physicians. The majority of physicians (67.57%) were familiar with CPGDTAP from the Asociación Mexicana de Gastroenterología (AMG), followed by those of the General Health Council of the Mexican Department of Health (CENETEC, the Spanish acronym) (54.05%) and the American College of Gastroenterology (ACG) (48.65%). A total of 97.30% of the physicians routinely use a nasogastric tube, 79.73% considered early enteral nutrition to be very important, as did 98.65% regarding generous fluid replacement, 85.14% did not routinely use antimicrobials, 63.51% ordered a CAT scan at 72 h or later, and 87.84% answered that infected necrosis was the indication for surgery, preferably after the third week. Discussion and conclusionsIn our hospital environment, the CPGDTAP issued by the AMG and CENETEC were the most well-known, but their recommended measures were given importance by under 85% of the physicians surveyed. Therefore, the diffusion of the knowledge they contain is advisable to guarantee optimal results in acute pancreatitis management.