title: Nationwide epidemiological survey of acute pancreatitis in Japan.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  A nationwide epidemiological survey was conducted to estimate the number of patients treated for acute pancreatitis (AP) in 2007 in Japan and to clarify the clinicoepidemiological features of AP.
  
  
  METHODS
  In the first survey, a simple questionnaire was used to inquire about the number of patients with AP who visited the hospital in the year 2007. This questionnaire was directly mailed to the heads of 3027 facilities. The second questionnaire was forwarded to those facilities from which patients with AP were reported on the first questionnaire.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The estimated total number of patients treated for AP in 2007 was 57,560 (95% confidence interval, 48,571-66,549), with an overall prevalence rate of 45.1 per 100,000 population. The sex ratio (male-female) of the patients was 2.0, with a mean age of 56.6 years in men and 64.6 years in women. Alcoholic AP was most common in men and gallstone AP in women. The overall mortality rate of AP was 1.9% and, in severe cases, 8.0%.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The number of patients with AP increased about 3-fold during this decade (19,500 in 1998 to 57,560 in 2007), and the mortality rate of AP was reduced from 7.4% in 1998 and 2.9% in 2003 to 1.9% in 2007.
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology Sendai, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Miyagi, Japan.
authors.forename: Kennichi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Satoh
authors.forename: Tooru
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Shimosegawa
authors.forename: Atsushi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Masamune
authors.forename: Morihisa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hirota
authors.forename: Kazuhiro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kikuta
authors.forename: Yasuyuki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kihara
authors.forename: Shinichi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kuriyama
authors.forename: Ichiro
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Tsuji
authors.forename: Akihiko
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Satoh
authors.forename: Shin
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hamada
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000009:adverse effects; D002648:Child; D015897:Comorbidity; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006331:Heart Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010195:Pancreatitis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology*; D050500:Pancreatitis, Chronic / Q000453:epidemiology; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016019:Survival Analysis; D055815:Young Adult