Chronic Pancreatitis: Epidemiology

Abstract

Data we have on the incidence and prevalence of chronic pancreatitis in various countries is sparse. This deficiency may be explained by several factors:

• The diagnosis of chronic pancreatitis, especially at an early stage, is not easy and requires an experienced doctor, expensive equipment and invasive procedures. An unknown, but probably substantial number of patients with irritable bowel syndrome or other conditions may be incorrectly diagnosed as having chronic pancreatitis.

• The generally accepted classifications of pancreatic diseases are not generally known or used. As a result, an interinstitutional data comparison is not possible at present. For example, chronic pancreatitis may be misdiagnosed as acute pancreatitis, and vice versa, and sequelae of acute pancreatitis, e.g., scars seen on endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP), may be deemed chronic pancreatitis (see Chap. 4 and Sects. 17.3, 17.4).

• Postmortem examinations do not reflect the true incidence of the disease since in most countries the rate of autopsies is declining. In addition, diagnoses provided on death certificates are not sufficiently accurate for exact statistical analysis.