[Acute pancreatitis and pregnancy].

Acute pancreatitis during pregnancy is a serious condition and diagnosis is often difficult. The authors report the case of a 32-year-old woman in the 32nd week of her fifth pregnancy, in which the outcome was fatal for both mother and child. The cause of pancreatitis during pregnancy has been attributed to many factors, chiefly cholelithiasis. A number of recent studies have shown the relationship existing between the role played by pregnancy in predisposing to gallbladder disease with lithiasis. Many diagnosis errors are made in this condition. Thus modern treatment methods have improved the prognosis in acute pancreatitis but, when it occurs during pregnancy, diagnostic delays often lead to a gloomy outlook.