eMedicine Specialties > Trauma > Abdominal Trauma

Pancreatic Trauma: Follow-up

Author: H Scott Bjerke, MD, FACS, Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Surgery, Indiana University School of Medicine, Medical Director of Trauma Services, Methodist Hospital, Clarian Health Partners, Inc
Contributor Information and Disclosures

Updated: Jun 30, 2006

Outcome and Prognosis

Outcome from minor and isolated pancreatic injury is usually quite good. Complications are rare, and functional outcome is excellent.

Outcome from severe pancreatic injury is much poorer overall than with other organ injuries. This outcome is primarily due to the frequent presence of associated life-threatening injuries and the unforgiving nature of the pancreas, both for missed injury and after major emergency operative intervention.

Future and Controversies

The future will continue to bring better and faster diagnostic modalities (eg, faster and more precise CT technology, including CT cholangiopancreatography). As these new methods are examined and compared to current technology, the evolution of care of the pancreatic injury will improve and morbidity rates will decrease. Multidetector CT scanners and MRCP are emerging as more sensitive diagnostic tools, but further clinical trials will be necessary to prove their effectiveness in pancreatic injury.

 


More on Pancreatic Trauma

Overview: Pancreatic Trauma
Workup: Pancreatic Trauma
Treatment: Pancreatic Trauma
Follow-up: Pancreatic Trauma
References
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Further Reading

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Keywords

abdominal trauma, penetrating trauma, retroperitoneal trauma, blunt trauma, pancreatic injury, gunshot wound, GSW, multiple organ injury, impalement, pancreatitis, diabetes mellitus, Whipple procedure, pancreatic duodenectomy, endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography, ERCP, pancreaticojejunostomy, acute respiratory distress syndrome, ARDS, multisystem organ failure

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Contributor Information and Disclosures

Author

H Scott Bjerke, MD, FACS, Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Surgery, Indiana University School of Medicine, Medical Director of Trauma Services, Methodist Hospital, Clarian Health Partners, Inc
H Scott Bjerke, MD, FACS is a member of the following medical societies: American Association for the History of Medicine, American Association for the Surgery of Trauma, American College of Surgeons, Association for Academic Surgery, Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma, Midwest Surgical Association, National Association of EMS Physicians, Pan-Pacific Surgical Association, Royal Society of Medicine, Southwestern Surgical Congress, and Wilderness Medical Society
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Medical Editor

Ernest Dunn, MD, Program Director of General Surgery, Director of Trauma and Critical Care, Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Surgery, Methodist Hospitals of Dallas, University of Texas Southwestern
Ernest Dunn, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American College of Surgeons, American Medical Association, Association for Academic Surgery, Society of Critical Care Medicine, and Texas Medical Association
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Pharmacy Editor

Francisco Talavera, PharmD, PhD, Senior Pharmacy Editor, eMedicine
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Managing Editor

Robert L Sheridan, MD, Assistant Chief of Staff, Chief of Burn Surgery, Shriners Burns Hospital; Associate Professor of Surgery, Department of Surgery, Division of Trauma and Burns, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School
Robert L Sheridan, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Pediatrics, American Association for the Surgery of Trauma, American Burn Association, and American College of Surgeons
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

CME Editor

Paolo Zamboni, MD, Professor of Surgery, Chief of Day Surgery Unit, Chair of Vascular Diseases Center, University of Ferrara, Italy
Paolo Zamboni, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Venous Forum and New York Academy of Sciences
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Chief Editor

John Geibel, MD, DSc, MA, Professor, Department of Surgery, Section of Gastrointestinal Medicine and Department of Cellular and Molecular Physiology, Yale University School of Medicine; Director of Surgical Research, Department of Surgery, Yale-New Haven Hospital
John Geibel, MD, DSc, MA is a member of the following medical societies: American Gastroenterological Association, American Physiological Society, American Society of Nephrology, Association for Academic Surgery, International Society of Nephrology, New York Academy of Sciences, and Society for Surgery of the Alimentary Tract
Disclosure: AMGEN Royalty Other; AMGEN Consulting fee Consulting

 
 
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