[The role of amylase in abdominal fluid in evaluating severity of acute pancreatitis and its prognosis].

Acute pancreatitis (AP) was induced on 22 cats, by injecting the mixture of bile and trypsin at different doses into the main pancreatic duct (MPD). In Group A, 7 cats revealed pancreatic interstitial edema after the injection of the mixture at 0.8 mg/kg. In Group B, 8 cats received the injection of the MPD at 1.0 mg/kg which resulted in significant extensive necrosis of the pancreas. The same pathological change was found in Group C (7 cats), combined with lesions of the lung and the liver. The survival time was different, more than 7 days in Group A, 50.4 hours in Group B and 10.4 hours in Group C (P < 0.001). Amylase concentration also showed marked difference in different groups, 4,890 U/L in Group A; 13 952 U/L in Group B and 23,810 U/L (P < 0.001) in Group C. These results are directly proportional to the severity of AP, but inversely proportional to the survival time. It suggests that amylase concentration in abdominal fluid can be used as an important marker to evaluate the severity of AP and its prognosis.