Can pancreatitis be treated?
Have you ever felt like your stomach was trying to kill you? The kind of pain that makes you wish for death’s sweet release? Well, if so, it might be pancreatitis. Pancreatitis is inflammation of the pancreas, a gland located behind your stomach.
But fear not, there are ways to treat this pesky ailment and escape the clutches of such pain. Here’s what you need to know:
Symptoms
The first step in dealing with pancreatitis is detecting it early on. So let’s look at some common symptoms:
- Severe abdominal pain
- Nausea and vomiting
- High fever
- Rapid pulse
- Fatty stool
If any or all of these pop up, consider getting an appointment with a doctor ASAP.
Causes
Moving on: what actually causes pancreatitis?
Well, apparently anything from excessive alcohol consumption to gallstones can trigger inflammation in the pancreas!
Other reasons include smoking (no surprises here), infection and even high levels of fat in the blood – big yikes! With all this negativity going around maybe we should name 2021 ‘the Year of Coincidence’.
All jokes aside though, best practice would be following healthy habits in order stay out of trouble’s way.
In more rare cases [^1], genetic mutations can also give birth too chronic forms rendering infections harder suubdue (cue dramatic music). In addition medical conditions such as cystic fibrosis have been known cause long-term issues if left untreated making early detection paramount!.
That said since genetics isn’t something we really have control over anyways let’s throw that one off right now by inspecting prevention tips next shall we?
Prevention Tips
Prevention [REDACTED
] They say “prevention is better than cure,” so let’s look at some steps you could take to avoid the possibility of pancreatitis. Here they are:
- Control your alcohol consumption and quit cigarette smoking at least limit it as much as possible (No, Vaping isn’t a suitable substitute).
- Stay on top of any lingering medical conditions i.e diabetes
- Maintain a healthy diet – this means watching out for carb-injected and excessive oily foods
- Stick onto low fat diets especially if you have a family history [2] .
Is there hope?
At times even with taking precautious measures we might still find ourselves exposed to one or more risk factors causing inflammation.
But hang tight buddy! Because there is good news: Acute Pancreatitis can be resolved within days whereas chronic forms require long-term monitoring and care managed by licensed professionals!
Well, here’s where things start getting serious. Depending on how severe the condition is, treatment operations may vary.
First thing firsts : In order accurately gauge cerain inflamation levels; Avoid eating up until 48 hours prior in anticipation of imaging studies mandatory before prescriptions can be made.[Banks Edward PA-C]
Anyway let’s get down to business:
Treatment type | Description |
---|---|
Medication | In some cases medication such as antibiotics are prescribed which fights away infections effectively. For many people dealing with pain NSAIDs like acetaminophen are also used. |
Dietary Changes | A high fiber diet including fruits and vegetables while reducing the intake of carbohydrates seems highly recommended [Elliott MD • Marchione DMN R.; Thomson Health BUZZ.lahgonline.com]. Moreover Clinicians would also highly advocate taking multiple smaller but well-balanced meals as opposed to traditional two/three meals a day.
|
Surgery | If the symptoms are extremely severe you might be looking at surgical procedures such as removing: Gallstones, The affected areas on the pancreas or repair damaged ducts. |