[Changes in incidence and prevalence of acute and chronic pancreatitis in Germany]

It is difficult to provide valid data with regard to changes in incidence and prevalence of acute pancreatitis in Germany. The lack of information is due to strict legal regulations to protect personal data, a certain lack of interest in epidemiological research and the lack of exact statistics of diseases treated in hospitals. The incidence of acute pancreatitis in other industrialized Western countries is about 10 new cases per year and 100,000 inhabitants. The increase of alcohol consumption over the last 30 years is associated with an increase of ethanol-induced pancreatitis. One may speculate that due to improved diagnostic possibilities, such as CT scan, cases where acute pancreatitis is diagnosed at autopsy are rare. Due to the increase in alcohol consumption it can be assume that the incidence and prevalence of chronic pancreatitis have increased in Germany similar to well-documented data from Denmark. Since alcohol consumption is slightly decreasing in Germany it is likely that the present incidence of about 10 cases of chronic pancreatitis per 100,000 inhabitants will also decrease.