Spectrum of acute pancreatitis in a patient- progression of complications

Abstract

Background Acute pancreatitis is defined as an acute condition presenting with abdominal pain, and is usually associated with raised pancreatic enzyme levels in the blood or urine, as a result of pancreatic inflammation. Acute pancreatitis may recur, severe episodes, however, may involve a progression to sterile and infected peripancreatic fluid collections, pancreatic necrosis and pancreatic abscess, pancreatic pseudocyst, pancreatic ascites and pancreaticopleural fistulas. These can be divided into acute or delayed, depending on whether such a collection is of less than or more than 4 weeks' duration. Pancreatic Abscess is a circumscribed intra-abdominal collection of pus, usually in proximity to pancreas. Pancreatic abscess is often a late complication of acute necrotizing pancreatitis, occurring more than 4 weeks after the initial attack. The reported mortality rate due to pancreatic abscesses after acute pancreatitis has been 30 to 50%, a statistic that has remained unchanged for decades.