[Diagnostics and therapy of chronic pancreatitis]

Chronic pancreatitis (CP) is characterized by progressive, chronic inflammation of the pancreas, resulting in loss of exocrine and endocrine function and chronic abdominal pain. In most cases, CP is induced by long-term alcoholism. The second most frequent diagnosis is idiopathic CP, in the absence of known causes of CP. However, the identification of genetic and immunological causes continuously reduces the number of cases classified as idiopathic pancreatitis. Common symptoms of CP comprise abdominal pain radiating to the back, diarrhea, steatorrhea and the development of diabetes. The diagnosis is mainly based on clinical features, typical morphological findings such as pancreatic calcifications, duct stenoses and dilatations, as well as pathologic pancreatic function tests. Treatment of CP includes watch and wait strategies in asymptomatic patients, symptomatic treatment of the clinical features such as pain, exocrine and endocrine insufficiency, as well as interventional or surgical therapy of complications such as pseudocysts, pancreatic duct stenosis, stones or biliary obstruction.