HEPATOBILIARY AND PANCREATIC ANOMALIES AND VARIATIONS: A REVIEW OF ETIOLOGY AND RECENT TECHNIQUES OF DIAGNOSIS

Abstract

Human liver is animperative organneeded for survival. It has a wide range of functions, such as detoxification, protein synthesis, glycogen storage, analysis of red blood cells, production of the hormones, and biochemical production of materials needed for the process of digestion. The pancreas is another essential organ that is responsible for role of body exocrine function, which in turn helps the digestion process.The endocrine functionhas a key role in the regulation of blood glucose and thus preserves the natural functions of some vital organs in the body such as the brain and kidneys. Understanding the development of the liver, bile ducts and pancreas, enables the identification of anomalies and variations. Although the causes of different anomalies is not clearly known, however, accurate diagnosis is a task that must be perfected in order to facilitate the diagnosis and the type of treatment required for the patient. This would further reduce the percentage of morbidity and mortality after surgical intervention.For instances, some patients may need surgery or interventional radiology while others need just follow-up based on the type of existing congenital anomalies and symptoms patient complaint. Furthermore, technological advances in the field of radiology help in diagnosing complex cases that cannot be done through clinical examination. Such include multi-computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging with dye and endoscopic ultrasound. Another area is the genetic studies such as the study notch pathway that transmit certain information to the cell embryonic cell thatparticipates in the allocation of cell types and organogenesis. Mutations in embryonic notch path signals may cause hepatic anomalies. Some of the anomalies include; anomalies of the hepatobiliary system classified into liver structure anomalies, such as polycystic liver disease or choledochal cys. Biliary atresia and accessory bile duct is considered as major source ofpost-operative bile leaks. Furthermore, there are abnormalities of blood vessels to the liver either arterial of venous. On the other hand, there are a number of abnormalities of the pancreas like fusion anomalies (such as pancreas divisum),migratory anomalies (such as annular pancreas) and these may lead to acute or chronic symptoms such as intestinal obstruction and jaundice. Hypoplasia and agenesis of the pancreas is one of the fundamental problems in children due insufficient insulin leading to diabetes in early age and other medical problems later.