Post-transplantation pancreatitis.

Post-transplantation pancreatitis occurs with a frequency of about 3 per cent and carries a mortality of 70 per cent. An average of 216 days following transplantation elapses before the onset of pancreatitis and tends to occur most frequently in men in the fourth decade of life. A multiplicity of factors which predispose to pancreatitis are present in the post-transplant period and may be responsible for the frequency and lethality of post-transplant pancreatitis. Among these factors are immunosuppressive therapy, consisting of azathioprine and steroids, secondary hyperparathyroidism and increased susceptibility to infection.