Autoimmune pancreatitis

Abstract

Autoimmune pancreatitis (AIP) is a disease which is considered to develop on the background of autoimmune mechanism. It is characterized by unique findings in imagings, appearance of various autoantibodies and elevation of IgG and IgG4 in the blood, and pathologically by lymphoplasmacytic sclerosing pancreatitis (LPSP). It associates various extrapancreatic lesions that have pathological findings similar to the pancreas. Oral prednisolone is a very effective medicine and symptoms and clinical findings disappear soon after the start of steroid therapy. Focal type of AIP is sometimes very difficult to be differentiated from pancreato-biliary cancer that raises dispute over the use of steroids for the differential diagnosis.