Acute Pancreatitis in a Nigerian Child: a Case Report

Abstract

Acute pancreatitis is one of the rare diseases in children and is particularly uncommon in the tropics. Its presentation may not be classical, and its diagnosis is often missed or delayed while its pathophysiologyremains poorly understood. We report the case of a seven-year-old Nigerian child who was managed for acute pancreatitis in our centre. On admission, he did not look particularly ill, but deteriorated rapidly and died within 36 hours of admission. This report seeks to bring to the awareness of child caregivers, the presentation of acute pancreatitis in children. It calls for the consideration of acute pancreatitis in the differential diagnosis of persistent abdominal pain and vomiting in children even in a tropical setting such as ours.