[Pancreatitis and pancreatic pseudocysts in children: a 12-year review].

Pancreatitis in children is uncommon, but can be associated with severe morbidity rates. Eleven patients (14 months to 9.5 years of age) with acute pancreatitis and one patient with chronic idiopathic pancreatitis beginning the second year of life, were treated over a 11-year period. Half of them had history of blunt abdominal trauma. The most frequent clinical presentations included abdominal pain and vomiting. Diagnosis of pancreatic injury was suggested by hypera-amylasemia, being the computerized tomography scan the most useful radiologic investigation. Medical treatment consisted of intravenous fluids, nasogastric suction and total parenteral nutrition. One third of the patients developed pancreatic pseudocysts (4); spontaneous resolution after observation and conservative therapy occurred in two and the others were treated by surgery. Ranson and Imrie scores can help predicting the severity of this disease in children; three of four pancreatic pseudocysts were judged to have severe pancreatitis by this criteria.