The Symptoms of Acute and Chronic Pancreatitis
Pancreatitis is the inflammation of the pancreas and can be acute or chronic. The pancreas is a large gland that is behind the stomach and close to the duodenum or the upper part of the small intestine. Pancreatitis can occur in people of all ages, but it is rare in children. There are almost 100,000 cases of Pancreatitis a year in the United States.Acute Pancreatitis is the sudden inflammation of the pancreas and can range from mild to life-threatening. It usually affects more women than men. The main causes are Gallstones and Alcoholism. Acute Pancreatitis usually requires hospitalization even if it is just a mild case. It usually will go away after a short period of time after the pancreas returns to its normal state.
Chronic Pancreatitis is the ongoing inflammation of the pancreas and begins as Acute Pancreatitis. If the pancreas becomes too damaged during the acute attack it is unable to return to its normal state and the Pancreatitis then becomes chronic. Chronic Pancreatitis usually affects more men than women. It can be caused by excessive lipids in the blood, gallstones, alcoholism and heredity. Chronic damage to the pancreas can cause Malabsorption problems that can lead to dramatic weight loss and insulin dependent diabetes.
The symptoms of both acute and chronic Pancreatitis are severe upper abdominal pain, back pain, nausea, vomiting, fever and a rapid pulse. Pancreatitis can also cause dehydration, low blood pressure and it can also cause the heart, lungs or kidneys to fail. Acute Pancreatitis can cause breathing problems. The pain may worsen after eating and it may become constant and so severe that it becomes disabling.
Alcoholism often becomes a big factor in many cases of Pancreatitis and sometimes misunderstood because the damage from alcohol may not appear for many years. So a person may stop drinking and develop Pancreatitis years after. Seventy percent of chronic cases are caused by alcoholism. Other causes are congenital conditions like pancreas divisum, cystic fibrosis, high levels of calcium in the blood, high levels of blood fats, some drugs and certain autoimmune conditions.
By: C.Olvera
Published: 04/28/08
Published: 04/28/08
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@ 4:24 pm 05/28/08 by paulette davies