Granulomatous pancreatitis--granulomas in chronic pancreatitis

Granulomatous pancreatitis can be described only in infectious granulomas and pancreatic involvement by systemic granulomatosis. The presence of classical chronic tryptic pancreatitis in addition to individual sarcoidosis granulomas in one of our cases of sarcoidosis, shows that pancreatitis in a patient with generalized granulomatosis should not necessarily be considered granulomatous pancreatitis. A variety of foreign-body granulomas found in the pancreas may be explained by previous surgical operations, and other foreign bodies introducted iatrogenically. Occasionally, the pancreas in chronic pancreatitis contains granulomas that must be considered foreign body granulomas, although the causal foreign body cannot be identified. We believe that we can identify inspissated secretion that has passed out of the ductal system into the interstitium as the foreign body responsible. It is not possible to establish whether such iatrogenic measures as manipulations of the duct with back-up of the secretion within the ductal system, has any causative involvement in this secretion oedema. However, the absorption of the individual parenchymal secretions is impaired to such a degree that any extravasated remain "in situ" for a lengthy period. The absorption of the aqueous constituents leads to inspissation, so that it can finally be absorbed only through the formation of foreign body granulomas. The same granulogenic property in highly scarred pancreatic parenchyma is also recognizable in the abnormal degradation mode of normally absorbable Ethibloc, and in the excessive arterial and periarterial reactions following angiography. The presence of granulomas within the parenchyma of the pancreas in chronic pancreatitis, many of which have been induced by endogenous and/or exogenous foreign bodies would not lead us to refer to a granulomatous pancreatitis, since the remaining sections of the parenchyma manifest typical necroses and scar foci of chronic pancreatitis. We would characterize these granulomas by the term "granulomas in chronic pancreatitis", and differentiate this from granulomatous pancreatitis.