Gallstone pancreatitis is caused by migration of gallstones through the common bile duct and ampulla of Vater, where ohetruction or impaction may occur. Early detection and endoscopic treatment of impacted gallstones are very important for the amelieration of pancreatitis. Pancreatic imagings, such as conventional ultrasonography, computerised tomography(CT) and endoscopic retrograde cholangiypancreatography(ERCP) have beea used for the diagnosis of gallstone pancreatitis. But these imaging net are often unsatisfactory fordetection of the impacted gallstones in the common bile duct ampulla of Vater. Especially ERCP has been contraindicated in acute pancreatitis. Endoscopic ultrasonography(EUS), which was recently developed, has been known as highly accurate diagnostic tool in the diagnosis of biliary and pancreatic disease. The high resolution of EUS is capable of showing unique morphological detail in gallstone pancreatitis. We report 3 cases of gallstone pancreatitis which Was accurately diagnosed by EUS and successfully treated by endoscopic treatment.
Ampulla of Vater ; Cholangiopancreatography, Endoscopic Retrograde ; Common Bile Duct ; Diagnosis ; Endosonography* ; Gallstones* ; Pancreatic Diseases ; Pancreatitis* ; Ultrasonography

BACKGROUND/AIMS: We aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of peginterferon plus ribavirin for chronic hepatitis C (CHC) patients under real life setting in Korea. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed the medical records of 758 CHC patients treated with peginterferon plus ribavirin between 2000 and 2008 from 14 university hospitals in the Gyeonggi-Incheon area in Korea. RESULTS: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype 1 was detected in 61.2% of patients, while genotype 2 was detected in 35.5%. Baseline HCV RNA level was > or =6x10(5) IU/mL in 51.6% of patients. The sustained virological response (SVR) rate was 59.6% regardless of genotype; 53.6% in genotype 1 and 71.4% in genotype 2/3. On multivariate analysis, male gender (p=0.011), early virological response (p<0.001), genotype 2/3 (p<0.001), HCV RNA <6x10(5) IU/mL (p=0.005) and adherence to the drug >80% of the planned dose (p<0.001) were associated with SVR. The rate of premature discontinuation was 35.7%. The main reason for withdrawal was intolerance to the drug due to common adverse events or cytopenia (48.2%). CONCLUSIONS: Our data suggest that the efficacy of peginterferon and ribavirin therapy in Koreans is better in Koreans than in Caucasians for the treatment of CHC, corroborating previous studies that have shown the superior therapeutic efficacy of this regimen in Asians.
Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Genotype ; Hepacivirus ; Hepatitis C, Chronic ; Hepatitis, Chronic ; Hospitals, University ; Humans ; Male ; Medical Records ; Multivariate Analysis ; Retrospective Studies ; Ribavirin ; RNA