Novel infectious causes of acute pancreatitis: A comprehensive review

Abstract

Acute pancreatitis can result from a variety of infections. The causative pathogens have been well established to be certain viruses and parasites. However, certain infections fail to find mention in standard literature and have been overlooked due to the trivial number of cases of pancreatitis that result from them. Among these are influenza, leptospirosis, acute viral hepatitis, and certain tropical infections such as dengue, chikungunya, scrub typhus, malaria, and typhoid. In this narrative review, we have conducted a literature search on PubMed and EMBASE databases for cases of pancreatitis occurring in these diseases and compiled the data. Most of these infections are prevalent in the developing world, and consequently, more cases are reported from these regions. The pathogenesis, predictors of outcome, and the response to antimicrobial therapy have not been studied extensively. The actual incidence is probably higher than what is reported, and this subject deserves more attention.

Keywords

• acute pancreatitis
• chikungunya
• coronavirus disease 2019
• dengue
• infections
• influenza
• leptospirosis
• malaria
• scrub typhus
• viral hepatitis