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Pancreatic Panniculitis

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Deadly Dermatologic Diseases
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Abstract

Pancreatic panniculitis is a form of subcutaneous fat necrosis that occurs as a rare manifestation of various pancreatic diseases, most commonly pancreatitis, or pancreatic carcinoma. Fat necrosis at remote sites occurs in only a small percentage of those with pancreatic disease. Its pathogenesis is uncertain. Clinical observations indicate that pancreatic panniculitis occurs in only a small number of patients with pancreatic disease. It does not develop in many with striking elevation of pancreatic enzymes and may arise in patients with normal circulating enzymes. Lesions of pancreatic panniculitis have been induced at sites of injury from a vascular procedure, suggesting that local trauma in a susceptible individual is capable of inducing disease. Localized lesions have also been induced by paracentesis in a patient with acute pancreatitis, most likely the direct effect of peritoneal pancreatic enzymes on subcutaneous fat reached via the needle tract from the procedure.

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Correspondence to Stephen C. Somach MD .

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Somach, S.C. (2016). Pancreatic Panniculitis. In: Crowe, D., Morgan, M., Somach, S., Trapp, K. (eds) Deadly Dermatologic Diseases. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-31566-9_21

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-31566-9_21

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