INTRODUCTION: The chronic alcohol abuse is an important cause of liver cirrhosis and chronic pancreatitis. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the prevalence of chronic pancreatitis (CP) in patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis (ALC) based on histopathological assays. Subjects: Autopsies of 25 patients with ALC, 18 men and seven women, age ranging from 24 to 83 years (mean ± standard deviation: 47.2 ± 13.8) were retrospectively analyzed. They ingested on average 239.6 ± 155.3 g ethanol/day for a mean period of 16.7 ± 7.2 years. METHODS: Liver cirrhosis histopathological diagnosis was based on the findings of systemized fibrosis with formation of septum-delimited nodules and nonspecific chronic inflammation. CP histopathological diagnosis was based on identification of mononuclear cell infiltration (MCI) around the ducts and in the inter- and intra-lobular connective tissue and presence of strands of fibrosis. CP was classified as mild (discrete MCI in the periductal, inter- or intra-lobular areas with thin strands of fibrosis), moderate (increased exudates and fibrosis, occasionally associated with small dilatation of ducts), and severe (evident MCI, dense fibrosis, presence of plugs in the ducts, irregular ductal dilatation, glandular atrophy and, sometimes, calcification). RESULTS: CP was observed in 20 patients (80%) with ALC, and was considered mild in 13 (52%), moderate in two (8%) and severe in five (20%) patients. CONCLUSION: CP is often associated with the ALC, and it can be histologically severe in approximately 1/4 of the cases.
Alcoholic liver cirrhosis; Chronic pancreatitis; Alcohol; Histopathology
