[Acute relapsing pancreatitis, revealing Crohn disease, and regressing under corticotherapy]

A case of acute relapsing pancreatitis revealing Crohn's disease is reported. The diagnosis of chronic pancreatitis was highly suspected because of characteristic pain, repeated serum pancreatic enzyme elevation and ultrasound, CT-scan, pancreatography, and endosonography data. None of the classical aetiologies for chronic or acute pancreatitis were found. This observation presents some outstanding particularities: a) pancreatitis revealed Crohn's disease; b) there was no duodenal involvement by Crohn's disease; c) the diagnosis of chronic pancreatitis was highly suspected; d) corticoids induced dramatic improvement of intestinal and pancreatic manifestations, and the patient remained asymptomatic during a two-year follow-up. The efficacy of corticotherapy on pancreatic disorders suggests a common mechanism explaining the two diseases.