Chronic abdominal pain as the initial manifestation of pancreatic injury due to remote blunt trauma of the abdomen.

Three patients were admitted with severe abdominal pain that began after an asymptomatic latent period following blunt trauma to the abdomen. During initial medical evaluation 3 months to 1 year after the trauma, serum amylase levels were normal or minimally elevated, and computed tomography scanning revealed edema and/or pseudocyst formation in the tail of the pancreas. Pancreatography showed ductal stenosis or obstruction in the midbody of the pancreas in each patient. At surgery, chronic pancreatitis in the tail was clearly demarcated from the normal head of the gland. Distal pancreatectomy was curative. Blunt traumatic pancreatic ductal injury may occur without typical immediate posttraumatic acute pancreatitis. Chronic distal pancreatitis following an asymptomatic latent period may culminate in delayed admission months to years after the initial injury. Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography should be considered for evaluation of patients with chronic abdominal pain and prior blunt trauma to the abdomen.