Acute pancreatitis in Algeria. Report of 221 Cases.

A review of 221 patients operated on for acute pancreatitis during a 16 year period showed that women predominated 2:1. This is explained by the common occurrence of biliary stones in Algerian women. In more than half the patients, primary symptoms were biliary. Only 56 percent of diagnoses were established preoperatively. Acute edematous pancreatitis predominated, occurring in 58 percent, with necrotic pancreatitis occurring in 42 percent. Edematous pancreatitis was most often treated by biliary procedures and infiltration and draining of the pancreatic area. Necrotic forms were treated by necrotectomy, whereas segmental pancreatectomy was performed in seven patients. Postoperative mortality was 9.4 percent in the whole group but 37 percent in those with necrotic hemorrhagic pancreatitis. It is noteworthy that alcoholism, which is rare in Algeria, was the cause of pancreatitis in only six patients (3 percent). The main cause was biliary disease.