Role of Diffusion Weighted MR Imaging in Diagnosis of Acute Pancreatitis

Abstract

he pancreas is a composite organ, which has exocrine and endocrine functions. The exocrine pancreas is responsible for secretion of digestive enzymes, ions and water into the duodenum of the gastrointestinal tract. The digestive enzymes are essential for processing foodstuffs in meals to molecular constituents that can be absorbed across the gastrointestinal surface epithelium. The endocrine portion is responsible mainly for glucose metabolism. It is arranged as discrete islets of Langerhans, which are composed of five different endocrine cell types (alpha, beta, delta, epsilon, and upsilon) secreting at least five hormones including glucagon, insulin, somatostatin, ghrelin, and pancreatic polypeptide, respectively.