In June, 2008 I was admitted to University Hospital for acute pancreatitis. After an hour of driving and a 3-hour stay in the waiting room, I was finally admitted and blood tests were made to determine how serious this attack was. As it turned out, my Lipase was "off the chart," indicating a very serious condition, and that the pain was real. After a couple of days of Morphine and no food, the swelling of my pancreas finally abated. It was also the day before the pre-scheduled procedure, so I stayed in the hospital one more night.
An endoscopic ultrasound involves a scope which is fed down the throat, through the stomach, and into the duodenum—a short bowel section which serves as a junction between the stomach, pancreas and gall bladder; real digestion begins here when digestive enzymes from the pancreas are introduced prior to entry into the small intestine. This procedure allows doctors to see a very detailed image of the lining of the pancreatic duct, which is necessary for a proper diagnosis.
There are ten indicators doctors look for when determining whether one has “chronic pancreatitis," and a diagnosis is dependent on the patient matching at least four of the criteria; I matched five—including significant scarring all throughout the pancreatic duct, and a small cyst at its tail-end. I was subsequently officially diagnosed with chronic pancreatitis, an incurable, painful and potentially-fatal condition. Now I had the justification I needed to continue receiving Demerol injections!
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