[Lymph drainage disorder as a pathogenetic co-factor in acute pancreatitis?]

Experiments performed on 71 Wistar rats confirm that preexisting interruption of lymph drainage by ligation of the ductus thoracicus can have a major influence on the development of pancreatitis. The effect of a ductus hepatopancreaticus blockade in experimental group A (32 animals) was greatly exacerbated by previous ligation of the ductus thoracicus (experimental group B; 34 animals). Edema of the interstitial pancreatic tissue led to lipolytic necrotizing pancreatitis with a slight hemorrhagic component, increasing ascites after the 12 th hour of the experiment, and numerous abdominal fat necroses after about 19 hours, but only relatively minor necroses of acinar parenchyma cells in the pancreas. Fat tissue necroses were only found in almost 20% of the animals in group A, and these probably resulted from manipulation of the duodenum during the implantation of a shunt to divert the bile, whereas they were found in all animals of group B after the 19th hour of the experiment, usually in large numbers. The sometimes considerable increases in serum amylase and particularly lipase activity were caused by obstruction of the efferent ducts, but did not increase appreciably after disturbance of the lymph drainage systems. On the contrary, under these circumstances, drainage of the salivary edema via the peritoneal mesothelium and into retroperitoneal fat tissue must be considered responsible for ascites and the initiation of fat cell necroses by lipase and other enzymes.