Pancreas: The Role Of False Pain In The Human Body

The patient’s chief complaint was of sharp pain in the abdomen around the center. The primary organ related to midepigastrum abdominal pain is the pancreas. In the abdomen, the pancreas is located behind the stomach, between the spleen and duodenum. It is a long, slender gland that has a head, body and tail (Lewis, Dirksen, Heitkemper & Bucher, 2014). Peritoneum covers the anterior portion of the pancreas, while inside consists of lobes and lobules. The pancreatic duct enters the duodenum through the common bile duct (Lewis et al., 2014). Arterial blood enters through the branches of the celiac and superior mesenteric arteries. Venous blood leaves at the head of the pancreas through the branches of the hepatic portal vein and leaves the body and tail through the splenic vein (McCance & Huether, 2014). …show more content…
Parasympathetic neurons of the vagus nerve innervate the pancreas which stimulates the release of enzymes (exocrine) and hormones (endocrine). Inside of the pancreas are the islets of Langerhans which have four hormone-secreting cells: alpha, beta, delta and F cells (McCance & Huether, 2014). Alpha cells are responsible for secreting glucagon. Beta cells secrete insulin and amylin. Delta cells secrete gastrin and somatostatin. Lastly, F cells secrete pancreatic polypeptide which stimulates gastric secretion. All of these hormones regulate carbohydrate, fat, and protein metabolism (McCance & Huether, 2014). In addition to hormonal secretion, the pancreas contributes to digestion by releasing enzymes. The pancreatic enzymes include trypsin, chymotrypsin, carboxypeptidase, amylase and lipase. Protein digestion occurs with trypsin and chymotrypsin. Amylase is a starch to disaccharides and fat digestion occurs with lipase (Lewis et al., 2014). The proteases (trypsin, chymotrypsin and carboxypeptidase) are secreted in the inactive form so digestion of the pancreas does not