Acute pancreatitis in
pregnancy is rare and occurs in approximately 3 in 10,000
pregnancies. It rarely complicates
pregnancy, and can occur during any trimester, however over half (52%) of cases occur during the
third trimester and during the post-partum period.
Gallstones are the most common cause of
acute pancreatitis. On the other
hand,
acute pancreatitis caused by
hypertriglyceridemia due to increase of
estrogen during the gestational period is very unusual, but complication carries a higher
risk of
morbidity and
mortality for both the
mother and the
fetus. We experienced a case of
pregnant woman who died of acute exacerbation of
hypertriglyceridemia-induced
acute pancreatitis at 23 weeks of
gestation. We
report on progress and management of this case along with
literature reviews.