Significance of a sonographic secretin test in the diagnosis of pancreatic disease. Results of a prospective study.
In a prospective study the pancreatic duct diameter was measured sonographically before and after secretin stimulation in 20 healthy controls and 59 patients with upper abdominal pain, weight loss, and/or diarrhea. Whereas healthy controls and patients without pancreatic disease after secretin stimulation showed a distinct pancreatic duct dilatation of more than 90% of basal duct diameter, no distinct secretin-induced duct enlargement was observed in most patients with chronic pancreatitis. Patients with circumscript pancreatic duct stenosis even had a marked and longer-lasting duct dilatation after stimulation. In patients with anomalies of the pancreatic duct system, no uniform response was found after secretin injection. In this study the sonographic secretin test showed a sensitivity of 92% and a specificity of 95% for diagnosis of chronic pancreatitis. The results confirm that this diagnostic method can be recommended as a reliable screening test for pancreatic disease.
Glaser
J
J
Medical Clinic and Outpatient Clinic, University of Münster, FRG.
Högemann
B
B
Schneider
M
M
Hultsch
E
E
van Husen
N
N
Gerlach
U
U
D000328:Adult; D003967:Diarrhea / Q000209:etiology*; D004415:Dyspepsia / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010182:Pancreatic Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012633:Secretin; D014463:Ultrasonography; D015431:Weight Loss
D012633:Secretin