Assessment of corticosteroid treatment of ethionine pancreatitis in the rabbit.

Corticosteroid treatment of acute pancreatitis has recently been advocated by clinicians. The effectiveness of steroids in the prevention of pancreatitis was studied in the model of ethionine pancreatitis in rabbits. A group of 20 rabbits received ethionine for 6 days. Methyl prednisolone succinate was also given to half of the group for a period of 6 days. Animals were killed on the 7th day; enzyme determinations were done; tissues from the pancreas and liver were obtained, coded, and read as unknown by the pathologist; and tissue damage categorized. Corticosteroid treatment was associated with greater elevation of serum amylase and other enzymes. Light microscopic examination of pancreas and liver revealed no apparent beneficial effect from corticosteroid treatment. The experiment was repeated with special stains being made of liver and pancreas, and electron microscopic studies of five animals in each group was done. Light microscopy showed little difference in cellular damage between the two groups. Electron microscopy revealed less apparent damage in the steroid treated (methyl prednisolone succinate) animals than controls. Steroids may provide minimal protection on a subcellular level from ethionine pancreatitis.