Pancreatitis: Minimially Invasive Procedure Offers Long-Term Pain Relief
Many more patients with chronic pancreatitis can safely turn to a minimally invasive operation for long-term pain relief, according to a new study by Johns Hopkins University physicians. Endoscopic therapy is an effective alternative to more invasive surgery or drugs, says Anthony N. Kalloo, MD, director of GI endoscopy at Hopkins and lead author of the study that appeared in the July...Acute Pancreatitis On The Rise Due To Alcohol Consumption
Researchers say increasing alcohol consumption may be partly to blame for patients suffering from acute pancreatitis. Acute pancreatitis is mainly caused // by alcohol abuse and gall stones. It produces a sudden attack of severe upper abdominal pain, often accompanied by nausea and vomiting. An attack usually lasts about 48 hours. Researchers say pancreatitis has a poor prognosis overall...Indian Scientists Identify Second Pancreatitis Gene
Indian scientists have discovered a second candidate gene - cathepsin B - responsible for the fatal tropical calcific pancreatitis disease that leads to a gradual destruction of the pancreas.// A chronic disease that leads to progressive destruction of pancreas and a painful death, pancreatitis can strike people in tropical countries, including India, and in the west. The ge...Risk of Acute Pancreatitis Low With Statins
New research reveals that while cholesterol-lowering drugs do increase the risk of painful inflammation of the pancreas, the side effect is relatively rare//, according to Sonal Singh, M.D., from Wake Forest University School of Medicine, and colleagues. 'Acute pancreatitis is a fairly common condition and cholesterol-lowering drugs have been implicated in some cases,' said Singh. 'Since...