Exocrine pancreatic secretion in normal controls and chronic calcifying pancreatitis patients from Burundi: possible dietary influences

Pure pancreatic juice composition was studied, after secretin and cerulein stimulation in 29 people from Burundi (Central Africa): 17 controls and 12 alcoholic chronic pancreatitis (CP) patients. Results were compared to similar data in France. African controls had a similar pancreatic response to hormones apart from a much lower lipase secretion than French controls. In the early non-calcified stage of African CP water and bicarbonate secretion were markedly diminished while protein and lipase concentrations were enhanced. In the late stage, secretion was exhausted except that of calcium. Nutritional data were obtained under the same conditions in 40 African controls and in 34 CP patients (including all patients tested for secretion). African controls had a very low fat intake (35.2 +/- 2.6 g/day), and patients had a higher protein and fat intake (144.7 +/- 5.9 and 66.2 +/- 4.8 g/day, respectively) than local controls: as in other countries, CP was associated with a diet enriched in alcohol, fat and protein.