Pancreatitis occurs when digestive enzymes become activated while still in the pancreas, irritating the cells of your pancreas and causing inflammation.
With repeated bouts of acute pancreatitis, damage to the pancreas can occur and lead to chronic pancreatitis. Scar tissue may form in the pancreas, causing loss of function. A poorly functioning pancreas can cause digestion problems and diabetes.
Conditions that can lead to acute pancreatitis include:
- Gallstones
- Alcoholism
- Certain medications, such as estrogens, steroids, and thiazide diuretics
- High triglyceride levels in the blood (hypertriglyceridemia)
- High calcium levels in the blood (hypercalcemia), which may be caused by an overactive parathyroid gland (hyperparathyroidism)
- Pancreatic cancer or other blockages to the pancreatic duct
- Abdominal surgery
- Cystic fibrosis
- Infections, such as mumps, hepatitis A or B, or salmonella
- Injury to the abdomen
- Obesity
- Trauma to the pancreas
- Tumor
- Kidney transplantation
- Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP), a procedure used to treat gallstones, also can lead to pancreatitis.
- Viruses can also cause pancreatitis, which is usually short-lived.
- Pregnancy (rare)
- Sometimes, a cause for pancreatitis is never found. This is known as idiopathic pancreatitis.
The most common causes (more than 70% of cases) of acute pancreatitis are
- Gallstones
- Alcohol abuse
Factors that increase your risk of pancreatitis include:
- Excessive alcohol consumption. Research shows that heavy alcohol users (people who consume four to five drinks a day) are at increased risk of pancreatitis.
- Cigarette smoking. Smokers are on average three times more likely to develop chronic pancreatitis, compared with nonsmokers. The good news is quitting smoking decreases your risk by about half.
- Obesity. You’re more likely to get pancreatitis if you’re obese.
- Diabetes. Having diabetes increases your risk of pancreatitis.
- Family history of pancreatitis. The role of genetics is becoming increasingly recognized in chronic pancreatitis. If you have family members with the condition, your odds increase — especially when combined with other risk factors.