Hi Emma,
Iv'e had acute pancreatitus twice in the past 2 years, and have found the hospital services very inadequate.
I don't know alot about the condition, im only 16 but i hope i can help. Obviously there will be many differences between our two experiences, and the Nurses and Doctors were totally stumbled by my age and why i had the condition.

They carried out the exact same procedure with me- Went to hospital, given morphine, was put on a drip, given antibiotics, couldn't eat for 4 days, then i was introduced to small meals then left after several tests.

They didn't find the usual cause- Gallstones. I had several x-rays and ultrasounds to check for them. I don't drink much alcohol, don't smoke and exercise regularly, and have a regular fat intake.

I wasn't given much advice, but have been researching to try and find the cause to try and prevent it happening again, seen as ive had it twice and missed alot of time off school.

Its suggested to have a low fat diet, if you smoke its advised to stop, and obviously avoid excessive alcohol consumption.

The chances of happening again if they didn't find a cause, are small, but clearly from my experience, there is a chance it can happen again. Even when tests were taken a couple of weeks before i had my second spell of it, there were no signs of it; and the hospital wrote me off saying they didn't think i would have it again and it was a one-off.

My best advice is that, although the chances are minimal of getting it again as many patients have it once and never again, its best to have a plan in place. The pains you got when you first got pancreatitus are quite memorable, and if you have any signs of getting them again, its best to get down to the hospital as soon as possible to avoid it getting even worse. The quicker you can catch it; the speedier the recovery. When i had it the second time, i recognized the symptoms and told my mum to take me straight to the hospital and the experience was alot less-worse than the previous time when i was on 24 hour survelliance and being woke up every half an hour for injections.

I hope this is a help, and hope you don't get it again, i know how bad it is!


This website i found is pretty good in giving an overview of the condition and the possible causes for it, half of them werent even mentioned by my consultants!

http://www.emedicine.com/MED/topic1720.htm

Seven years ago, I fell out on the floor and passed out from sudden pain. I was lucky our med director was in the building, sent me to hospital via ambulance and was very sharp in diagnosing it quickly. Unfortunately I had a 15cm pseudocyst on mine and had to have coon resection. I almost died. My surgeon said I should be on a billboard for him. Every dr and nurse coming in my room wanted to know how much I drank daily. It took my husband and best friend forever to convince them that I was not a heavy drinker. I have had7 hospitalized bouts since then and now suffer with chronic bouts. Diet made no difference for me.

So to make a short story long.. yes you can have it again and go to the hospital immediately. After one bout they usually get you relief much faster the next time.

Also, I found that diladid worked MUCH better than morphine.


Good luck

Oh and just to mention
i had it yet again in October whilst i was on holiday in Mallorca and have to say they were so much better with dealing with it than the NHS, even though i spoke no Spanish at all i seemed to know what was happening alot better than in the UK!

I have now been referred to a specialist in my County to see if he can shed any light on the problem.

Good Luck

I'm sorry to all of you who suffer from acute pancreatitis - absolutely no one deserves this condition.

I'm 20 years old and am just now recovering from my fourth severe attack. I don't drink alcohol, have no known autoimmune disorders, and with my gallbladder removed after the second attack, fall pretty squarely in the idiopathic camp (we have no idea what's causing it). One last possible procedure, which is usually only brought up as a last resort, is to have the sphincter of the pancreas cut (in case it is causing a blockage). The only problem is that the pressure test used to see whether this is the case can itself cause pancreatitis. I'm also not incredibly keen to have more procedures done without first determining whether they will help.

*However*

I have some advice for anyone with pancreatitis: as soon as you feel an attack coming on, or while you're waiting for the ambulance, find someone willing to massage the middle section of your back (behind the stomach) and apply a warm pack to the area. The doctors I spoke to don't necessarily hold much store by this technique, but last night it averted the worst of an attack and allowed me to avoid a visit to the hospital.

If you ever (heavens forbid) have the opportunity to test this out, let me know how it works for you.