What Is Pancreatitis?
The medical term is marked by the inflammation of the pancreas. Pancreas is responsible for making hormones and enzymes needed by our body. These hormones help to control the way sugar is processed in our body, while enzymes helps in digesting the food we eat.
Pancreatitis can be chronic (develops in years) or acute (develops suddenly and persists for days). In addition, mild instances of pancreatitis can resolve itself without needing a treatment; however severe instances may cause serious complications.
What Are The Symptoms Of Pancreatitis?
Its symptoms can vary, merely depending upon the type an individual is suffering from:
Symptoms of acute pancreatitis are:
- Vomiting.
- Nausea.
- Abdominal pain that can worse after having meals.
- Abdomen may feel tender to touch.
Symptoms of chronic pancreatitis are:
- Smelly, oily stools.
- Unintentional weight loss.
- Upper abdominal pain.
What Causes Pancreatitis?
In normal digestion, enzymes produced by our pancreas travel through the ducts and reaches to our small intestine, a place where they get activated. After being activated, these enzymes become ready to assist with digestion.
However, in pancreatitis, these enzymes tend to get activated when they are in the pancreas. Such irritates the cells of pancreas, which results in the inflammation of pancreas and rooting the symptoms of pancreatitis.
Many triggers have been identified in contributing both the types of pancreatitis that is acute and chronic. These are:
- Abdominal surgery.
- Gallstones.
- Alcoholism.
- Cystic fibrosis.
- Cigarette smoking.
- Certain medication.
- Family history of the condition.
- Hypercalcemia, (a condition characterized by high levels of calcium in the blood) that results due to hyperparathyroidism.
- Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (a treatment of gallstones).
- Hypertriglyceridemia, a condition marked by high levels of triglyceride in the blood.
- Pancreatic cancer.
- Injury to the abdomen.
- Infection.
What Are The Complications Of Pancreatitis?
Pancreatitis can result in a number of serious complications such as:
- Pseudocysst.
- Infection.
- Breathing problems.
- Diabetes.
- Kidney failure.
- Malnutrition.
- Pancreatic cancer.
How Is Pancreatitis Diagnosed?
A number of procedures and tests that can help diagnose pancreatitis are:
- Stool tests can be suggested to measure fat levels.
- Blood tests will show increased levels of enzymes produced by pancreas.
- CT scan and abdominal ultrasound can be performed to monitor for gallstones, on the other hand, assess the level of inflammation in the pancreas.
- Magnetic resonance imaging to check for abnormalities in the ducts, pancreas and gallbladder.
- Endoscopic ultrasound to see for blockages and inflammation in the bile or pancreatic duct.
How Is Pancreatitis Treated?
Often, the treatment of pancreatitis needs hospitalization. After the patient’s condition become stable and doctors successfully manages the inflammation of pancreas, they can then focus on treating the causal condition of pancreatitis.
To some level, alternative therapies, such as yoga, relaxation exercises and mediation can help ease the pain one may feel with chronic pancreatitis, however these therapies cannot treat the condition.
By : Natural Health News
