[Surgical management of acute pancreatitis. One hundred years of evolution]

The aim of the paperwork is to present the evolution of surgical management of acute pancreatitis for a period of more than a century, by using the literature data that reveal the important moments in the knowledge of patho-etiology, in clarifying the definition and classification and, last but not least, in the progress of biological and image exploration, the right timing and the permanent development of surgical procedures so that the general mortality should decrease up to 10-15%, as it nowadays. The need for surgical intervention in acute pancreatitis is the controversy that appeared during this period. Until the mid of the 20th century, mainly on the basis of the clinic diagnosis, only the severe cases were recognized and became subjects of surgical exploration, with disastrous results. A great step forward was the dosage of urinary and serum amylase that allowed the non-surgical diagnosis of the disease, so that some patients could be treated successfully without surgery. Introduction of prognosis criteria by Ranson, the dosage of C-reactive protein together with CT scanning of the injury: interstitial - edematous or necrosis,the fine needle aspiration for bacteriology and the adoption of a definition and unitary classification resulted in a major change in therapy, in general, and in the surgical procedures. Necrosectomy combined with a drainage method, practised and developed by Beger since 1982, becomes a surgical dogma. Minimally invasive procedures became a reliable alternative to classic procedures due to the diversity and permanent development of laparoscopic, endoscopic and radiologic techniques.