title: Beta-cell reserve capacity in chronic pancreatitis.
abstract: The degree of correlation between exocrine pancreatic function and endocrine secretory capacity was examined in 13 chronic pancreatitis patients with secondary diabetes mellitus, 8 chronic pancreatitis patients without diabetes, and 11 healthy subjects. The two parameters were studied under maximal stimulation (volume-corrected secretin-pancreozym test and glucose-tolbutamide-glucagon provocation, respectively). A close, linear correlation was found between all endocrine variables and pancreatic acinar function (e.g. rs = 0.77 for chymotrypsin output and C-peptide release; p less than 0.0001). The correlation was less strong with pancreatic bicarbonate output (e.g. rs = 0.49 for C-peptide release; p less than 0.05). In our patients, secondary overt diabetes occurred in chronic pancreatitis when protease outputs were, on an average, reduced to about 10% of the mean maximal protease output of normal subjects.
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002096:C-Peptide / Q000378:metabolism; D002908:Chronic Disease; D002918:Chymotrypsin / Q000378:metabolism; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007328:Insulin / Q000378:metabolism; D000078790:Insulin Secretion; D007515:Islets of Langerhans / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D010186:Pancreatic Function Tests; D010187:Pancreatic Hormones / Q000378:metabolism; D010195:Pancreatitis / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology*
chemical_list: D002096:C-Peptide; D007328:Insulin; D010187:Pancreatic Hormones; D002918:Chymotrypsin