Management of acute pancreatitis: experience of a tertiary care hospital in Peshawar

Objectives: To document the frequency, age, gender, etiology, mortality and morbidity of patients suffering from acute pancreatitis (AP) and managed at a tertiary care hospital. Methodology: This prospective, descriptive, institution-based study was conducted in Department of Surgery, Rehman Medical Institute (RMI), Peshawar (Pakistan), from June 2010 to June 2013. All patients with acute pancreatitis admitted to our institute were managed with a set protocol. Consecutive, non-probability sampling was done. Data were collected from all patients by a single investigator using a researcher-administered questionnaire, which included patient demographics, various risk factors, treatment options, complications and mortality. Results: A total of 47 patients were included in the study; 28 female and 19 male patients. Out of 47 patients 35 (74%) were of Afghan origin, while 12 (26%) were Pakistani. Majority of patients (57%) were between 20-40 years of age. Gall stone pancreatitis (GSP) was the cause of AP in 13 (28%), dyslipidemia in 9 (19%), and traumatic AP in one patient, while in 24 patients (51%) it was idiopathic. Ten (21%) patients developed pseudocyst. Out of a total of 47 patients, 3 (6%) expired. Conclusion: Patients suffering from acute pancreatitis and presenting to our hospital had a predominance of females. Majority of patients were between ages of 20-40 years. Idiopathic pancreatitis was the most common type followed by GSP. Mortality and morbidity in this study was low in comparison to other local studies.