Why may a person with inflammation of the gallbladder also develop an inflammati!
Question: Why may a person with inflammation of the gallbladder also develop an inflammation of the pancreas!?
Answers:
The condition which caused one to be inflammed may cause the other to as well!. It may not be related to gallbladder disease but an autoimmune condition which is causing systemic inflammation!.Www@Answer-Health@Com
Most likely, you are referring to someone who has cholecystitis, and now pancreatitis as well!.
The reason is that in most people, the bile duct (to which the gall bladder drains) and the duct of the pancreas (called the pancreatic duct) share the same opening to the gut:
http://gallstoneflush!.com/images/biliary!.!.!.
So, if a person has gallstones, a stone can get stuck at the neck of the gallbladder and cause cholecystitis!. The stone can then exit the gallbladder, travel through the cystic duct then the common bile duct, and get stuck at the sphincter of Oddi, where both the common bile duct and the pancreatic duct drain into the gut!.
With a stone stuck at the sphincter, the pancreatic juice (full of digestive enzymes) is trapped inside the pancreas, and begins to digest the pancreas from within! This causes a tremendous amount of inflammation, known as pancreatitis!.
The treatment is not difficult -- through a procedure called ERCP, the doctors can get to the sphincter of Oddi through the mouth, using an endoscope (a long, flexible tube with a tiny camera mounted at the tip): http://digestive!.niddk!.nih!.gov/ddiseases!.!.!.
Once there, they can widen the sphincter of Oddi, allowing the stuck stone to pass naturally!. If necessary, they can even use a basket-like tool to physically grab the stone and pull it out!.
Once the stone is no longer blocking the flow of the bile and the pancreatic juice, the gallbladder and pancreas will heal themselves with time!.
Hope this helps!.Www@Answer-Health@Com
The reason is that in most people, the bile duct (to which the gall bladder drains) and the duct of the pancreas (called the pancreatic duct) share the same opening to the gut:
http://gallstoneflush!.com/images/biliary!.!.!.
So, if a person has gallstones, a stone can get stuck at the neck of the gallbladder and cause cholecystitis!. The stone can then exit the gallbladder, travel through the cystic duct then the common bile duct, and get stuck at the sphincter of Oddi, where both the common bile duct and the pancreatic duct drain into the gut!.
With a stone stuck at the sphincter, the pancreatic juice (full of digestive enzymes) is trapped inside the pancreas, and begins to digest the pancreas from within! This causes a tremendous amount of inflammation, known as pancreatitis!.
The treatment is not difficult -- through a procedure called ERCP, the doctors can get to the sphincter of Oddi through the mouth, using an endoscope (a long, flexible tube with a tiny camera mounted at the tip): http://digestive!.niddk!.nih!.gov/ddiseases!.!.!.
Once there, they can widen the sphincter of Oddi, allowing the stuck stone to pass naturally!. If necessary, they can even use a basket-like tool to physically grab the stone and pull it out!.
Once the stone is no longer blocking the flow of the bile and the pancreatic juice, the gallbladder and pancreas will heal themselves with time!.
Hope this helps!.Www@Answer-Health@Com