COMPREHENSIVE MANAGEMENT OF PAIN IN CHRONIC PANCREATITIS.

Background and objective: Chronic pancreatitis is a chronic, fibro-inflammatory condition that damages the pancreas' structural integrity permanently and impairs exocrine and endocrine function. Alcohol is a major part in the multifactorial pathogenesis. Pain in the form of recurrent attacks of pancreatitis or constant and disabling pain is usually the main symptom. Pain management is mainly empirical and involves treatment with potential potent analgesics, and duct drainage by endoscopic or surgical means. Methods: An observational study was conducted at Dr. D.Y. Patil Medical College for a period of two years, from 2020 to 2022. Cases of chronic pancreatitis were chosen for the study after taking informed consent of the patients concerned. This study aims at achieving comprehensive pain management, and seeks to assess the response to different modalities of treatment. Accordingly, a total of 36 patients were studied by commencing a medical line of management, and their responses were documented using the visual analog scale (VAS) on Day 1, Day 3, and Day 5. Pain medications were stepped up in unresponsive cases based on the World Health Organization (WHO) pain relief ladder. Celiac plexus block and surgical intervention (lateral pancreaticojejunostomy) were conducted where the pain could not be subsided by using the medical line of management. Results: Out of 36 cases with chronic pancreatitis, a majority of the cases had moderate pain (VAS score 4-7) at the time of admission, whereas severe pain (VAS > 7) was reported in 11.1% of the cases. Medical management was commenced in all cases by administering a paracetamol injection (1g IV, 8 hourly); however, pain was relieved in only 25% of the cases. In the remainder of cases, the line of treatment had to be stepped up by using a tramadol injection (1 ampule in 100ml NS IV, 8 hourly) in 61.1% (22 out of 27) of the cases, and by using a morphine injection (30mg IV, 8 hourly) in 13.9% (five) of the cases. Furthermore, celiac plexus block was required for managing pain in a total of 9 cases, and recurrence of pain after celiac plexus block was observed in 55% (5 out of 9 cases); these cases underwent lateral pancreaticojejunostomy. Cases that underwent surgical intervention showed satisfactory results with no recurrence of pain in the follow-up period. Conclusion: A majority of the patients responded to various levels of medical analgesia. Only a few required surgical intervention for pain management. Hence, a multidisciplinary approach is required for adequate management of pain to improve the quality of life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]