Complete agenesis of the dorsal pancreas--a case report and review of the literature.

A case of agenesis of the dorsal pancreas associated with diabetes mellitus and dilated biliary trees was reported. Preoperative diagnosis was made by endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography and computed tomography. Laparotomy revealed a normal head of the pancreas but complete agenesis of the body and tail. Biopsy specimens removed from the head showed normal pancreatic tissue but only fat tissue from the presumed body and tail. This anomaly has rarely been reported in the literature. A thorough review of the literature was made and consideration of differential diagnosis was discussed.