Acute Pancreatitis: A Review

A series of 68 patients with acute pancreatitis admitted to the Royal North Shore Hospital of Sydney in a three-year period is discussed. An ætiological diagnosis was made in 68% of these. There were three cases associated with a parathyroid adenoma and a 10% incidence of hæmorrhagic pancreatitis, and pseudocysts occurred in 6%. There was no mortality in the 22 patients who underwent laparotomy. The ætiological mechanisms, diagnosis and treatment of acute pancreatitis are reviewed.