[Acute necrotic hemorrhagic pancreatitis. Major complications (author's transl)]

Forty-four cases of acute necrotic haemorrhagic pancreatitis are studied. Fourteen cases were treated medically by peritoneal dialysis, 20 were treated surgically of which 16 had been medically treated by peritoneal dialysis. Fifteen died or 34%. Forty-one patients, 93.1% presented 8 major complications on admission and 2 complications were observed during the course of medical treatment (pulmonary shock and high digestive haemorrhage). The post surgical complications are excluded from this study. We report in order of frequency; effusion of the large peritoneal cavity (37 cases : 84%), hypocalcaemia less than or equal to 8 mg% (21 cases : 47.7%), renal insufficiency defined by a creatinaemia greater than or equal 2 mg% (17 cases : 38.6%), state of shock (13 cases : 29.5%), severe neurological disorders (11 cases : 25%), peritoneal haemorrhage (3 cases : 4.5%), disseminated intravascular coagulation (1 case : 2.2%), acute rabdomyolysis (1 case : 2.2%). Certain cases are particularly derogatory : pulmonary shock : 2 cases -- 2 deaths (100%); hypocalcaemia less than or equal to 7 mg/ : 6 cases -- 5 deaths (83.3%); acute tubular necrosis : 8 cases -- 6 deaths (75%); hypocalcaemia less than or equal 8 mg% : 21 cases -- 12 deaths (57.1%); high digestive haemorrhage : 3 cases -- 1 death (33.3%); amber known brown peritoneal effusion : 27 cases -- 12 deaths (44.4%); shock : 13 cases -- 5 deaths (38.5%). When in the same patients, less than 3 complications were present, the mortality rate was 20.8%. If more than 3 signs were observed the mortality rate rose to 53.3%. Except for pulmonary shock, six major complications were needed to give 100% mortality rate.