A Case of Acute Pancreatitis as a Complication of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

Abstract

Systemic lupus erythematosus(SLE) is a multisystem disease. Gastrointestinal rnanifestations are common in SLE, occurring in 35% to 40% of patients at some stage of their illness. Acute pancreatitis is a rare complication of SLE. To date, seventy cases of acute pancreatitis related to SLE have been reported and fourteen cases were unrelated to drugs such as steroids, diuretics or other immunosuppressive agents. Furthermore, only seven out of fourteen cases manifested acute pancreatitis in their initial course of SLE as was seen in our case. Additionally, there have been no such cases reported in Korea. Corticosteroids have been considered as both a cause and as a therapy for acute pancreatitis. We report a case of acute pancreatitis in a 40 year old Korean man presenting with multiorgan manifestations and diagnosed to have SLE. Renal biopsy showed membranous glomerulonephritis(WHO Class V). His serum amylase and lipase returned to normal on high dose prednisolone treatment.