The management of bleeding from a pancreatic pseudocyst: a case report.

Hemorrhage from pancreatic pseudocyst or a pseudoaneurysm is a rare, fatal complication of chronic pancreatitis. Elastase may cause erosion of adjacent vessels in the course of acute pancreatitis and spontaneous bleeding may occur. One therapeutic modality is embolotherapy, but surgery is the traditional therapy. Resection of the bleeding site of the pancreas, ligation of the affected vessels or compression by occluding the cyst with a balloon are good alternatives. We present a case having massive gastric hemorrhage from the splenic artery after cystogastrostomy, treated by occluding the artery with a foley catheter.