Acute pancreatitis secondary to pancreatic neuroendocrine tumours.
BACKGROUND
Pancreatic neoplasms are an uncommon aetiology of acute pancreatitis. Pancreatic neuroendocrine tumours are a rare subgroup of pancreatic neoplasms.


METHODS
We report on three patients having acute pancreatitis secondary to pancreatic neuroendocrine tumours, one of them with severe pancreatitis, and review the published cases up to now. Only 22 patients with acute pancreatitis secondary to pancreatic neuroendocrine tumours have been reported (including the present cases). Most of these cases were of non-functioning neoplasms and the course of the pancreatitis tended to be mild. In the most recent reports and in the present cases, the initial diagnostic method was CT scan. Less than half had metastases when the tumour was diagnosed and mortality from these neoplasms reached approximately 50%.


CONCLUSIONS
Pancreatic neuroendocrine tumours can cause acute pancreatitis even in patients under 50 years of age. On many occasions, the tumours are non-functioning; therefore, acute pancreatitis may be the first clinical symptom. Consequently, faced with acute pancreatitis of unknown origin, a non-functioning neuroendocrine tumour should be ruled out.
Griñó
Pilar
P
Department of Gastroenterology, Hospital General Universitario de Alicante, Alicante, Spain. martinez_juasem@gva.es
Martínez
Juan
J
Griñó
Emilio
E
Carnicer
Fernando
F
Alonso
Sergio
S
Pérez-Berenguer
Helena
H
Pérez-Mateo
Miguel
M
D000208:Acute Disease; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009102:Multiple Organ Failure / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology; D018358:Neuroendocrine Tumors / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology; D010190:Pancreatic Neoplasms / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology; D010195:Pancreatitis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology