Pancreatitis after cardiac surgery; a morphologic study.

Acute pancreatitis is a well known occurrence after upper gastrointestinal and biliary tract surgery when local trauma plays a major role in the pathogenesis of this complication. The incidence of pancreatitis after surgical procedures during which local trauma to the pancreas does not occur is extremely low (less than 0.1%). In the present study the incidence of unexplained pancreatitis in 182 patients who died after cardiac surgery was 16%. The role of ischemia in the pathogenesis of pancreatitis in this setting is evaluated.