PEIR Digital Library

Welcome to the Pathology Education Informational Resource (PEIR) Digital Library, a multidisciplinary public access image database for use in medical education.

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RADIOLOGY: PANCREAS: Case# 32897: PANCREATITIS. 35 year old male with a history of alcohol abuse who complains of abdominal pain and mild dyspnea. A large amount of peripancreatic fluid is seen throughout the abdomen. The fluid is dissecting throughout the anterior pararenal space to the diaphragm in a cephalad direction, and to the level of the iliac arteries in a caudal direction. The fluid is predominantly in the right anterior pararenal space as it dissects in the caudal direction. The fluid is also noted in the paracolic gutters and in the transverse colon mesentery. Free fluid is also possibly seen in the lesser sac. The pancreas is intact and not enlarged, with no signs of necrosis or pseudocyst. Mild bibasilar pleural effusions are noted with atelectasis to both bases. Pancreatitis can be classified into three clinical stages: (1) Edematous pancreatitis: mortality 5% (2) Partially necrotizing pancreatitis: mortality 30-75% (3) Totally necrotizing pancreatitis: mortality close to 100%