Hemosuccus Pancreaticus: A Rare Complication in Patients with Chronic Pancreatitis

INTRODUCTION Hemorrhage from the pancreatic duct is a rare source of gastrointestinal bleeding and references to it in the medical literature remain mostly limited to case reports and short reviews, with about 100 cases identified to date (1,2). Since the first report by Lower and Farrel in 1931 (3), many terms have been used to describe the phenomenon, including wirsungorrhagia proposed by Vankemmel in 1969 (4). Hemosuccus pancreaticus was proposed by Sandblom in 1970 and hemoductal pancreatitis by Longmire and Rose in 1973 (5,6). Hemosuccus pancreaticus is a hemorrhage transferring via the pancreatic duct. It is a rare condition and usually occurs in patients with a history of chronic pancreatitis and pseudocyst. Exudation of pancreatic proteolytic enzymes leads to the gradual autodigestion of nearby vessel walls, resulting in the A CASE TO REMEMBER