Imaging of Acute Pancreatitis

W221 Grading of Disease Severity The severity of acute pancreatitis may be broadly subdivided into mild and severe forms. Patients with mild acute pancreatit­ is tend to have acute interstitial pancreatit­ is whereas pancreatitis associated with hem­ orrhage, necrosis, or vasculitis is considered severe [6]. Most cases of acute pancreatitis are considered mild, with affected patients reporting modest abdominal pain and dis­ playing mild abdominal tenderness. Patients with mild acute pancreatitis have either min­ imal or no organ and systemic dysfunction. Therefore, patients with mild acute pancrea­ titis should respond quickly to medical ther­ apy, and their symptoms and laboratory val­ ues should normalize promptly [2]. Between 10% and 20% of cases of acute pancreatitis are considered severe [7]. Such patients will usually exhibit more severe ab­ dominal pain, vomiting, and clinical signs of peritonism with tachycardia, fever, and leu­ kocytosis. Patients with severe acute pancre­ atitis are more likely to have a protracted hos­ pital stay and to develop systemic or organ failure with renal, respiratory, and cardio­ vascular failure; disseminated intravascular coagulation; or gastrointestinal hemorrhage [2]. The clinical evaluation of severe acute Imaging of Acute Pancreatitis