Pancreas Pain Symptoms

The pancreas is an organ that is an important part of the digestive tract. This is an organ that is responsible for release of various enzymes and hormones as well. The pancreatic juice contains enzymes that help in hydrolyzing carbohydrates, proteins and fats that are ingested. The hormones produced by the pancreas are the all important glucagon and insulin. Present in the upper abdomen, there are many conditions that can cause and lead to pancreas pain symptoms.

Pancreas Pain Causes
The most common condition responsible for pancreas pain is pancreatitis. Pancreatitis is nothing but the inflammation of the pancreas. This may be acute or chronic in nature. There are many conditions that could be responsible for pancreatitis, like gallbladder disease, alcohol, trauma, excess use of steroids, etc. The other common cause is pancreatic cancer. Pancreatic cancer is the malignant neoplasm of the pancreas, the chances of landing with which, increase with age. The exact cause of this condition is not known though age, smoking, obesity and a propensity towards diabetes mellitus have been implicated. These are the two main causes of pain in pancreas and the symptoms for these conditions also vary accordingly.

Symptoms of Pancreas Pain
It is difficult to club all the symptoms, as they usually vary depending on the underlying cause. However, they are often not restricted to the abdomen but spread to other parts of the body too. Given below are the various symptoms:

• Pain in the upper abdomen which usually radiates to the surrounding areas, like the back, is a common complaint related to pancreas problems. In fact, abdominal pain that radiates to the back is a hallmark symptom of pancreatitis.
• As the person eats food, the pancreas are supposed to secrete and release their juice accordingly. However, when a person is suffering from a disease of the pancreas, then the pancreas will malfunction, which will lead to decreased secretion of the juice. This often has a ripple effect on the body, leading to malabsorption, deficiency of nutrients, loss of appetite, weight loss, etc.
• In some conditions, when there is a disease of the pancreas, there may be development of jaundice, due to blockage of the bile duct.
• In some cases, as the pancreas are not performing their function properly, there may be development of diabetes, due to the decreased secretion of insulin.

Pancreas Pain Treatment
The treatment will depend on the underlying cause. First, a pancreas pain diagnosis needs to be made, as there are many organs in the abdominal region, so the abdominal pain could be due to any of them. However, more often than not, elevated amylase and lipase levels are usually indicative of a pancreatic disease. If the person has pancreatitis, then the treatment will entail dealing with the gallstones or whatever it is that is causing the pancreatitis. Also, maintaining a strict pancreatitis diet also helps to keep the severity of symptoms in check. Pancreas pain relief will entail taking certain analgesics. However, if the person has pancreatic cancer, then the treatment options include surgery or chemotherapy. The prognosis for pancreatic cancer is relatively poor though.

Pancreas pain is a serious symptom that is usually indicative of an underlying disease. The diagnosis of this condition should be established at the earliest. Also, one must never ignore such symptoms, as the prognosis of any pancreatic disease worsens with any kind of delay.