Acute Pancreatitis: A Narrative Review.

Abstract

Acute pancreatitis is an increasingly prevalent gastrointestinal condition worldwide with substantial morbidity and mortality. This narrative review summarises the epidemiology and contemporary management of acute pancreatitis. A literature search was conducted in May 2025 to identify studies published from inception to May 2025 in MEDLINE/PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus. Electronic searches were supplemented by manual screening of reference lists from key articles identified via Google Scholar using the following key terms: "acute pancreatitis, prevalence, epidemiology, aetiology and management" For PubMed, the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) terms were used based on the research question. Boolean operators were employed to fine-tune the search terms. There were no language restrictions. The diagnostic criteria for acute pancreatitis were aligned with the American College of Gastroenterology guidelines for the management of acute pancreatitis. After screening abstracts and full texts, 31 articles were included in this review. Acute pancreatitis is still a major health concern, with the burden increasing globally, mainly attributed to the increased burden of obesity and gallstones. The most common etiologies of acute pancreatitis are ascribed to biliary disease, alcohol consumption and hypertriglyceridemia. Acute pancreatitis is associated with substantial morbidity and mortality in its severe form, underscoring the need for timely diagnosis and appropriate management to improve outcomes.