title: Does the presence of obesity and/or metabolic syndrome affect the course of acute pancreatitis?: A prospective study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The incidence of acute pancreatitis (AP) is rising with increased prevalence of obesity, which exacerbates pancreatic injury. Metabolic syndrome (MS) is defined as a cluster condition of cardiovascular risk factors, including hyperglycemia, dyslipidemia, hypertension, and central obesity. We analyze if the presence of obesity and/or MS affects the course of pancreatitis.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data were collected from 140 patients with AP between January 2010 and February 2013. Anthropometric data, including body mass index and waist circumference, were measured. Biochemical tests were used including fasting glucose, triglyceride, low- and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels, and total cholesterol level. Atlanta criteria, Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II, and Ranson scoring system were used to define severe AP. Patients were classified as having MS based on the International Diabetic Federation criteria.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean body mass index was 30.15 kg/m(2). Sixteen (11.4%) patients had severe AP, whereas 124 (88.6%) patients had mild AP. We found that 62.8% of patients with AP fulfilled the criteria of MS (P = 0.000). Body weight can be used to predict clinical severity of AP with significant P value (P = 0.009).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The presence of MS in patients with pancreatitis is noticeable, but it does not affect the course of disease severity, whereas obesity correlates with pancreatitis severity.
authors.affiliation: From the *Department of Surgery, College of Medicine, Taibah University; †Department of Radiology, King Fahd Hospital; ‡Medical Laboratory Department, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Taibah University; and §Department of Surgery, Al-Ansar Hospital, Al Madina, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Samer
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sawalhi
authors.forename: Hamdi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Al-Maramhy
authors.forename: Abdelrahman I
authors.initials: AI
authors.lastname: Abdelrahman
authors.forename: Salah Eldin Geib
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Allah
authors.forename: Salman
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Al-Jubori
mesh_terms: D018806:APACHE; D000208:Acute Disease; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D015992:Body Mass Index; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D024821:Metabolic Syndrome / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D010195:Pancreatitis / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D015995:Prevalence; D011379:Prognosis; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D012529:Saudi Arabia / Q000453:epidemiology; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D055105:Waist Circumference; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers