Pancreatitis
The digestive system is an amazing structure of primary and secondary organs. One of the main functions of the digestive system is to provide nutrients to the body and according to McKinley, O’Loughlin, and Bidle in their book Anatomy and Physiology second edition “the digestive system performs six main functions: ingestion, motility, secretion, digestion, absorption and elimination of waste."(1021) The primary organs consist of the mouth, throat, esophagus, stomach, and the small and large intestine while the accessory organs are the liver, pancreas and salivary glands. One specific accessory organ peaks a lot of interest and that would be the pancreas but more importantly a disorder associated with it which is called pancreatitis. However, before we can discuss pancreatitis we must first talk about the pancreas and its exocrine functions. Then we
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Pancreatitis is known as the inflammation of the pancreas. This inflammation causes the enzymes inside the pancreas to attack and damage the exocrine cells which could cause it to destroy itself. This can cause bleeding, scaring of tissue and organ failure. Bile that has become hard also known as Gallstones is a common cause of pancreatitis because of the inflammation they cause while passing through the common bile duct. The NIDDK also states that alcohol is another common cause as well as “abdominal trauma, medications, infections, tumors, and genetic abnormalities of the pancreas.” Symptoms can be most times severe and sudden but it isn’t uncommon for someone not to notice for a couple days. Pain can usually be noticed in the abdominal area and in the lumbar region of the back. Other symptoms may include feeling sick, throwing up, an above normal fever, and a pulse rate higher than