Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2018 Oct 22;3(1):71-79.
doi: 10.1002/jgh3.12099. eCollection 2019 Feb.

Thoracic complications of pancreatitis

Prem Kumar  1 , Pankaj Gupta  2 , Surinder Rana  2
Affiliations
Review

Thoracic complications of pancreatitis

Prem Kumar et al. JGH Open. .

Abstract

Acute pancreatitis in its severe form may lead to systemic inflammatory response syndrome and multisystem organ dysfunction. Acute lung injury is an important cause of mortality in the setting of severe acute pancreatitis. Besides lung involvement, acute and chronic pancreatitis may also lead to the involvement of other thoracic compartments, including mediastinum, pleura, and vascular structures. These manifestations are an important cause of morbidity and may pose diagnostic and therapeutic challenges. These manifestations have not been discussed in detail in the available literature. In this review, we discuss the thoracic complications of pancreatitis, including lung, pleural, mediastinal, and vascular manifestations.

Keywords: ALI; ARDS; fistula; pancreatitis; pleural effusion; pseudocyst.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Acute respiratory distress syndrome. Chest radiograph shows bilateral lung infiltrates (arrows).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Pancreaticopleural fistula. Coronal magnetic resonance (MR) image (a) shows heterogeneous signal of pancreas (thick arrow). A small peripancreatic collection is seen (arrow). A hyperintense tract is seen extending from the collection to the mediastinum (short arrow). The entire extent of the tract and the left pleural effusion are not seen in this image. Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography image (b) shows dilated main pancreatic duct (MPD) (thick arrow) with a contrast extravasation (arrow) and a fistulous tract extending toward the left pleural cavity (short arrow).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Mediastinal pseudocyst. Axial (a) and sagittal (b) computed tomography images show a mediastinal pseudocyst (arrows). Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) (c) shows the mediastinal pseudocyst as anechoic cystic structure (arrow). EUS‐guided aspiration (d) of the cyst (arrow) is performed using a fine needle (short arrow).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Beger HG, Rau B, Mayer J, Pralle U. Natural course of acute pancreatitis. World J. Surg. 1997; 21: 130–5. - PubMed
    1. Bradley EL III. A clinically based classification system for acute pancreatitis. Summary of the International Symposium on Acute Pancreatitis. Arch. Surg. 1993; 128: 586–90. - PubMed
    1. Bollen TL, Besselink MG, van Santvoort HC, Gooszen HG, van Leeuwen MS . Toward an update of the Atlanta classification on acute pancreatitis: review of new and abandoned terms. Pancreas 2007; 35:107–113. - PubMed
    1. Banks PA, Bollen TL, Dervenis C et al Acute Pancreatitis Classification Working Group. Classification of acute pancreatitis—2012: revision of the Atlanta classification and definitions by international consensus. Gut. 2013; 62: 102–11. - PubMed
    1. Thoeni RF. The revised Atlanta classification of acute pancreatitis: its importance for the radiologist and its effect on treatment. Radiology. 2012; 262: 751–64. - PubMed