Japanese clinical guidelines for autoimmune pancreatitis.
OBJECTIVE
As the patients with autoimmune pancreatitis (AIP) are increasing in Japan, the practical guideline for managing AIP is required to be established.


METHODS
Three committees (the professional committee for making clinical questions [CQs] and statements by Japanese specialists, the expert panelist committee for rating statements by the modified Delphi method, and the evaluating committee by moderators) were organized. Fifteen specialists for AIP extracted the specific clinical statements from a total of 871 literatures by PubMed search (approximately 1963-2008) and from a secondary database and made the CQs and statements. The expert panelists individually rated these clinical statements using a modified Delphi approach, in which a clinical statement receiving a median score greater than 7 on a 9-point scale from the panel was regarded as valid.


RESULTS
The professional committee made 13, 6, 6, and 11 CQs and statements for the concept and diagnosis, extrapancreatic lesions, differential diagnosis, and treatment, respectively. The expert panelists regarded them as valid after a 2-round modified Delphi approach.


CONCLUSIONS
After evaluation by the moderators, the Japanese clinical guideline for AIP has been established. Further studies for the international guideline are needed after international consensus for diagnosis and treatment.
Okazaki
Kazuichi
K
Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Kansai Medical University, Hirakata, Osaka, Japan. okazaki@hirakata.kmu.ac.jp
Kawa
Shigeyuki
S
Kamisawa
Terumi
T
Ito
Tetsuhide
T
Inui
Kazuo
K
Irie
Hiroyuki
H
Irisawa
Atsushi
A
Kubo
Keishi
K
Notohara
Kenji
K
Hasebe
Osamu
O
Fujinaga
Yasunari
Y
Ohara
Hirotaka
H
Tanaka
Shigeki
S
Nishino
Takayoshi
T
Nishimori
Isao
I
Nishiyama
Toshimasa
T
Suda
Koichi
K
Shiratori
Keiko
K
Shimosegawa
Toru
T
Tanaka
Masao
M
D044466:Asian People; D001327:Autoimmune Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000208:ethnology / Q000628:therapy*; D032921:Consensus; D003697:Delphi Technique; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D010195:Pancreatitis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000208:ethnology / Q000628:therapy*; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic