What is acute pancreatitis? According to Buttaro, Trybulski, Bailey, and Sandberg-Cook (2013), acute pancreatitis is a very sudden, severe, painful, and excruciating stomach ache due to the inflammatory process of the pancreas. The vulnerability and presentation of acute pancreatitis may vary among the different populations. A typical patient experiencing acute pancreatitis will exhibit severe upper abdominal pain that may intensify with breathing, resulting in patients being reluctant to take a deep breath. Most patients will describe this severe pain as a constant, knife-like, poorly localized abdominal pain that radiates to the back in about 50% of patients. Although the pancreas is located in a retroperitoneal location, the majority of
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In the United States, gallstones tend to be the main cause of 45% of pancreatitis cases in females, while alcohol intake is responsible for about 35% of pancreatitis cases in males. Acute pancreatitis is typically treated in the hospital for frequent monitoring of vital signs (VS), temperature, laboratory blood levels, intravenous fluid (IV) replacement due to dehydration, electrolyte balances, and blood glucose, especially if the patient has diabetes …show more content…
M., Trybulski, J., Bailey, P. P., and Sandberg-Cook, J., (2013), the exact mechanism of pancreatitis is not understood, but it is related to the autodigestion of the pancreas. Normally, the pancreatic enzymes are activated and released into the intestine via pancreatic ducts, but in pancreatitis, the pancreatic enzymes are activated and remain in the pancreas. During this activation process, once one inactive enzyme gets activated, it not only digests the pancreas, but also activates other additional enzymes that also contribute to the autodigestion of the pancreas. Laboratory levels showing elevated pancreatic enzymes and serum amylase is the most common test used to identify and diagnose acute pancreatitis. In addition, conducting a computerized tomography (CT) scan with contrast will be the most useful imaging equipment in diagnosing pancreatitis and recognizing any additional injuries to the
In the United States, gallstones tend to be the main cause of 45% of pancreatitis cases in females, while alcohol intake is responsible for about 35% of pancreatitis cases in males. Acute pancreatitis is typically treated in the hospital for frequent monitoring of vital signs (VS), temperature, laboratory blood levels, intravenous fluid (IV) replacement due to dehydration, electrolyte balances, and blood glucose, especially if the patient has diabetes …show more content…
M., Trybulski, J., Bailey, P. P., and Sandberg-Cook, J., (2013), the exact mechanism of pancreatitis is not understood, but it is related to the autodigestion of the pancreas. Normally, the pancreatic enzymes are activated and released into the intestine via pancreatic ducts, but in pancreatitis, the pancreatic enzymes are activated and remain in the pancreas. During this activation process, once one inactive enzyme gets activated, it not only digests the pancreas, but also activates other additional enzymes that also contribute to the autodigestion of the pancreas. Laboratory levels showing elevated pancreatic enzymes and serum amylase is the most common test used to identify and diagnose acute pancreatitis. In addition, conducting a computerized tomography (CT) scan with contrast will be the most useful imaging equipment in diagnosing pancreatitis and recognizing any additional injuries to the