Chronic alcoholism is a well-known etiologic factor associated with chronic and irreversible pancreatic and liver disorders.
There is a correlation between increased ethanol consumption through many years and the risk of developing chronic pancreatitis (CP). An excessive consumption of alcohol is also associated with liver cirrhosis (LC), again with a correlation between increased ethanol consumption and the risk of LC. In clinical practice, the coincidence of both diseases, LC and CP, is rare. Furthermore, these two diseases do not share risk factors apart from alcohol consumption.
A research group leaded by Luis Aparisi, form Hospital Clínico Universitario studied the possible association between CP and LC of alcoholic etiology. They compared clinical, functional, morphological and biochemical parameters in alcoholic subjects with a definitive diagnosis of CP or LC and this will be published on October 28, 2008 in the World Journal of Gastroenterology.
In their study, one hundred and forty consecutive alcoholic patients were subdivided into three groups: CP (n = 53), LC (n = 57), and asymptomatic alcoholic (n = 30). Clinical, biochemical and morphological characteristics, Child-Pugh index, indocyanine green test, and fecal pancreatic elastase-1 test were assessed.