Acute pancreatitis(AP) in children is not common but can be associated with severe morbidity rates and its diagnosis is often delayed. Thus, reported mortality rates range from 0 to 78%. We have treated 26 patients with AP from 5 to 17 years of age over the past 17 years. We are intended to assess the relevance of the prognostic criteria used to assess severity of adult AP and to review the etiology, clilical presentation, diagnosis, and management of AP in children. The authors retrospectively reviewed 26 children with AP managed in Kyung Hee University Hospital from 1978 to 1995. Among 26 patients with AP, male were 12, and female were 14. And the mean age of patients was 11.8 years. In 9(34.6 %), no definitive cause was identified. Common causes of AP were trauma(23.1 %) and biliary tract disease(23.l%). Other etiologies were viral infection(15.4%) and post ERCP(3.8%). The presenting features were abdominal pain(92.3%), vomiting(61.5%), fever(l9.2%), submandibular pain(l1.5%), and abdominal mass(7. 6%). Back pain was rare(3.8%). Abdominal ultrasonographic findings were abnormal in 10 of 16 patients(62.5%) and abdominal CT findings were abnormal for 9 of 9 patients(100%). Seventeen patients(65.3%) were managed conservatively, and nine patients(34.6%) required surgical treatment. There was no mortality. To evaluate the severity of disease, we used the Imrie prognostic criteria used to assess the severity in adult AP. The number of positive criteria was correlated to the duration of hospitalization(r2=0.91) but statistically insignificant(p > 0.05). But, the number of positive criteria was correlated to the operative incidence(r2 = 0.93) and statistically significant(p<0.05). The common causes of AP in children were unkown origin(34.6%), trauma(23.l %), and bili.ary tract disease(23.1 %). Ultrasonography and computed tomography were useful imaging tools of AP in children. The Imrie criteria used to evaluate the severity in adult AP were suspected to be valuable to asssess the severity of AP in children.
