Pancreatitis aguda

The concept of acute pancreatitis and its complications is currently changing, and the presence of persistent organ failure is essential to classify patients as severe. In addition, the incidence of acute pancreatitis is increasing throughout the Western world, both that of pancreatitis of any etiology as well as that of biliary origin. In patients with acute idiopathic pancreatitis, cancer of the pancreas is an important cause of the disease, and consequently appropriate etiological study is essential in these patients. In this sense, the role of endoscopic ultrasonography should be highlighted. From the therapeutic point of view, certain drugs that inhibit leukocyte and pancreatic elastase may play an important role in the future, as encouraging results have been found in experimental models. In the acute phase of the disease, oral feeding can be reintroduced with a solid low-fat diet; more gradual reintroduction is not required. Lastly, the present article discusses the latest data on the prevalence of acute pancreatitis following endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography.