[Retinopathy associated with acute pancreatitis]

Purtscher's retinopathy is a retinal lesion associated with different diseases such as cardiac aneurism, thoracic compression, bone fractures, post-trauma, pancreatitis and eclampsia. It consists in the appearance of white patches and retinal hemorrhage encircling an apparently normal optic disk. There is some controversy about its pathogenesis, but a probable cause for the development of this affection might be leukocyte emboli activated by complement. We present the case of a patient who developed a Purtscher's like retinopathy while he was being treated for pancreatitis.