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Whether mortality from acute pancreatitis is increased in elderly patients is unclear. To examine this issue, investigators in Italy conducted a retrospective, single-center study of 884 patients with acute pancreatitis: 352 were 65 years of age or older and 532 were younger than 65. The elderly patients had significantly higher rates of preexisting comorbid conditions and a higher risk for developing severe pancreatitis based on Ranson scores.
Although the rate of pancreatic necrosis was similar between elderly and younger patients (14.2% and 10.5%, respectively), mortality (the primary outcome) was higher among elderly patients (7.4% vs. 1.9%; P<0.001). In addition, elderly patients were admitted to the ICU at a higher rate (58.9% vs. 6.3%…