Pancreatitis

Symptoms

Acute Pancreatitis

Acute pancreatitis comes on suddenly, usually with mild to severe pain in the upper abdomen that radiates to the back and sometimes to the chest. The pain may be nearly constant for hours or even days and is likely to worsen when the patient eats food or drinks alcohol. Patients may experience repeated attacks of acute pancreatitis and recover fully from each, but the attacks can permanently damage the pancreas. If alcohol abuse causes acute pancreatitis, the disease will become chronic and progressively destroy the pancreas. Each acute attack has the potential to cause life-threatening complications.

Signs and symptoms of acute pancreatitis include:

• Abdominal pain
• Nausea and vomiting
• Fever
• Rapid pulse
• Swollen, tender abdomen
• In severe cases, dehydration, low blood pressure, internal bleeding, and shock

Chronic Pancreatitis

Chronic pancreatitis gradually destroys the pancreas and nearby tissues, but it may be years before signs and symptoms appear. Some patients never experience discomfort, but most have intermittent bouts of abdominal pain that last from a few hours to weeks or even years. Drinking alcohol or eating food often worsens symptoms.

Hereditary pancreatitis is considered a form of chronic pancreatitis; it is caused by a genetic defect present at birth. Signs and symptoms don't appear until the first or second decade of life.

In addition to pain, chronic pancreatitis can cause:

• Poor appetite or anorexia
• Weight loss, even when appetite and eating habits are normal
• Steatorrhea — oily, malodorous stools resulting from poor digestion and malabsorption of nutrients, particularly fats
• Diabetes