What Is Chronic Pancreatitis? Symptoms, Causes and Treatment

Pancreas in the human body performs one of the essential functions, which is to create enzymes to digest food particles. The condition where the pancreas suffers from severe inflammation, which doesn't heal over time, is called chronic pancreatitis. Chronic pancreatitis is extremely severe than the acute stage, and the individual suffering from such an ailment must undergo treatment for chronic pancreatitis.

Keep reading to know the symptoms of chronic pancreatitis besides its causes and treatment plans.

During the initial stage of chronic pancreatitis, symptoms start with severe abdominal pain followed by nausea, mostly after a meal. Gradually, the pain becomes severe as the pancreas loses its capability to produce digestive juice. 

Furthermore, individuals suffering from chronic pancreatitis encounter the following symptoms: 

• Stomach bloating
• Flatulence
• Severe abdominal cramps
• Steatorrhea

In addition to these general symptoms of chronic pancreatitis, individuals can also experience some issues if they develop Type 1 diabetes, including repeated urination, sudden loss of weight, poor or blurred vision, fatigue, extreme hunger, etc. Individuals can prevent these diseases by understanding the root causes of chronic pancreatitis.

Chronic pancreatitis is the severe occurrence of inflammation in the cells of the pancreas that hinders the formation of good enzymes. According to many studies, individuals tend to ignore signs of acute pancreatitis or repeated mild abdominal pain and develop a chronic stage of this ailment. 

The causes of this acute stage of pancreatitis problems include:

• Heavy consumption of alcohol 
• Occurrence of gallstones that causes blockage of the duct
• Development of scar tissue around the cells of pancreas
• Any abdominal surgical procedure
• Obesity
• Cystic fibrosis leads to the building of mucus in lungs. This condition is primarily hereditary in nature 
• Levels of high triglyceride in blood vessels
• Development of cancerous cells in pancreas, etc.

In addition to this, the increase in the calcium level in the blood (hypercalcemia) due to overactive hyperparathyroidism can become one of the causes of chronic pancreatitis. The severity of this disease can be life-threatening, and not treating the inflammation of pancreas can lead to serious health complications.

Some of the severe complications that individuals with chronic pancreatitis encounter are kidney failure, intestinal infections and development of bad bacteria, chronic malnutrition, diabetes, pseudocyst, breathing problems, and pancreatic cancer. Understanding the cause and who is likely to develop this disease is necessary to combat these health complications.

Various medical reports state that half of the individuals suffer from acute and chronic pancreatitis due to poor lifestyles. People engaged in excessive consumption of alcohol and smoking are prone to pancreatitis. Moreover, research depicts that the nonsmokers and nondrinkers tend to decrease the chances of getting this disease by half, which implies that living a balanced lifestyle can keep this severe sickness at bay. 

In addition to this, factors like obesity and diabetes are also responsible for the occurrence of such health issues. However, doctors recently found out that genetics play a significant role in triggering such diseases in the human body. For this reason, the doctors verify and try to understand a patient's history before recommending treatment for chronic pancreatitis.

After studying the symptoms of chronic pancreatitis and patient's history, doctors always suggest changing daily habits. It includes quitting smoking and alcohol consumption, eating low-fat food, and regular intake of vitamins and enzymes tables. In short, treatment of this complication starts with improving the overall lifestyle. 

Apart from this, some of the medical procedure for treating chronic pancreatitis involves the following points:

1. Insulin Therapy

The deficiency of producing natural insulin to control sucrose level in the blood causes diabetes. Hence, it is found that around 50% of patients suffering from chronic pancreatitis have instigated Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes. Therefore, in this case, as a primary treatment, patients are given regular insulin therapy to balance the level of blood sugar level.

2. Pain Management

Some of the powerful pain relief medications that doctors prescribe to relieve the pain are pregabalin and opioids. In some cases, patients are also offered prescription nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like ibuprofen or naproxen.

3. Surgical Procedure

The excessive accumulation of digestive juices due to blockage in the duct increases abdominal pain to a severe level. It is in this chronic situation, doctors opt for surgical procedures to aid from this discomfort. 

Some of the standard surgical procedures performed under the guidance of specialist doctors are 

• Endoscopic Surgery

This procedure involves the insertion of a narrow flexible tube in the digestive tract. The entire process is seen through a small camera. This narrow tube inflates a small balloon into a duct, making it wider. At this step, a performing doctor places a stent to keep the mouth of the duct open. It is considered that the successful ratio of this surgery is 60%; however, most people opt for this surgical procedure. 

• Resection of Pancreas

This is the process of removing a part of the pancreas that is causing the infection and inflammation. The specialist physician uses any of the three techniques to carry out resection of the pancreas. 

Frey Procedure

Beger Procedure

Pylorus-sparing pancreaticoduodenectomy

Doctors have suggested these techniques based on their medical records as these surgeries involve risk factors and are only performed in rare cases.

• Complete Pancreatectomy

In this procedure, the whole pancreas is removed, which is one of the most effective ways of reducing pain. Along with the pancreas, gallbladder, common bile duct, spleen and a part of the small intestine are completely operated out. In most cases, transplantation of self-producing insulin cells of the patient is attached, which prevents him/her from becoming diabetic.

Individuals who search for “what is chronic pancreatitis” also need to know about the preventive measures recommended by different specialist practitioners. A large part of this disease is influenced by poor food intake and an unbalanced lifestyle. Therefore, one should includes whole grains, legumes, a low-fat dairy and ample fruits and vegetables in the diet. In addition to this, it is also necessary to consume healthy fats that are present in fatty fish, nuts, trail mix, avocado, etc. Furthermore, cutting down on alcohol intake and including exercise can control the factors that influence chronic pancreatitis.

To conclude, chronic pancreatitis is a severe medical complication that affects the lifespan of individuals. Hence, treating chronic pancreatitis is pivotal to keeping chronic issues like diabetes and pancreatic cancer at bay. It is proven that early diagnosis and medication can stop the growth of inflammatory cells around pancreas.