Open AccessEndoscopic ultrasound for the diagnosis of chronic pancreatitis
Author(s) -
Tyler Stevens,
Mansour A. Parsi
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
world journal of gastroenterology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.427
H-Index - 155
eISSN - 2219-2840
pISSN - 1007-9327
DOI - 10.3748/wjg.v16.i23.2841
Subject(s) - pancreatitis , endoscopic ultrasound , endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography , medicine , pancreatic duct , radiology , pancreatitis, chronic , pancreas , ultrasound , pancreatic disease , surgery
Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) has become a well accepted test for the diagnosis of chronic pancreatitis. Advantages include its ability to detect subtle and severe changes of the pancreatic duct and parenchyma, and its relative safety compared with endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography. Limitations include inter- and intra-observer variability, operator dependence, and an incomplete understanding of its true accuracy. The Rosemont classification has recently been proposed as a weighted, standardized method that may improve EUS chronic pancreatitis scoring. This paper reviews the published evidence regarding the accuracy of EUS in chronic pancreatitis diagnosis, and enumerates the emerging technologies that have been recently studied which may ultimately improve endosonographic imaging of the pancreas.