title: Assessment of severity of acute pancreatitis according to new prognostic factors and CT grading.
abstract: The assessment of severity at the initial medical examination plays an important role in introducing adequate early treatment and the transfer of patients to a medical facility that can cope with severe acute pancreatitis. Under these circumstances, "criteria for severity assessment" have been prepared in various countries, including Japan, and these criteria are now being evaluated. The criteria for severity assessment of acute pancreatitis in Japan were determined in 1990 (of which a partial revision was made in 1999). In 2008, an overall revision was made and the new Japanese criteria for severity assessment of acute pancreatitis were prepared. In the new criteria for severity assessment, the diagnosis of severe acute pancreatitis can be made according to 9 prognostic factors and/or the computed tomography (CT) grades based on contrast-enhanced CT. Patients with severe acute pancreatitis are expected to be transferred to a specialist medical center or to an intensive care unit to receive adequate treatment there. In Japan, severe acute pancreatitis is recognized as being a specified intractable disease on the basis of these criteria, so medical expenses associated with severe acute pancreatitis are covered by Government payment.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, National Hospital Organization Sendai Medical Center, 2-2-8 Miyagino, Miyagino-ku, Sendai, 983-8520, Japan. kktakeda@snh.go.jp
authors.forename: Kazunori
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Takeda
authors.forename: Masamichi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yokoe
authors.forename: Tadahiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Takada
authors.forename: Keisho
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kataoka
authors.forename: Masahiro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yoshida
authors.forename: Toshifumi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Gabata
authors.forename: Masahiko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hirota
authors.forename: Toshihiko
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Mayumi
authors.forename: Masumi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kadoya
authors.forename: Eigoro
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Yamanouchi
authors.forename: Takayuki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hattori
authors.forename: Miho
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sekimoto
authors.forename: Hodaka
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Amano
authors.forename: Keita
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Wada
authors.forename: Yasutoshi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kimura
authors.forename: Seiki
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kiriyama
authors.forename: Shinju
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Arata
authors.forename: Yoshifumi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Takeyama
authors.forename: Morihisa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hirota
authors.forename: Koichi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hirata
authors.forename: Tooru
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Shimosegawa
mesh_terms: D018806:APACHE; D000208:Acute Disease; D018450:Disease Progression; D006801:Humans; D010195:Pancreatitis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000401:mortality*; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D011379:Prognosis; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed