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World J Gastroenterol. Nov 14, 2013; 19(42): 7282-7291
Published online Nov 14, 2013. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v19.i42.7282
Pain and chronic pancreatitis: A complex interplay of multiple mechanisms
Jakob Lykke Poulsen, Søren Schou Olesen, Lasse Paludan Malver, Jens Brøndum Frøkjær, Asbjørn Mohr Drewes
Jakob Lykke Poulsen, Søren Schou Olesen, Lasse Paludan Malver, Asbjørn Mohr Drewes, Mech-Sense, Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Aalborg University Hospital, DK-9000 Aalborg, Denmark
Asbjørn Mohr Drewes, Center for Sensory-Motor Interactions (SMI), Department of Health Science and Technology, Aalborg University, DK-9000 Aalborg, Denmark
Jens Brøndum Frøkjær, Mech-Sense, Department of Radiology, Aalborg University Hospital, DK-9000 Aalborg, Denmark
Author contributions: All authors contributed to this review.
Supported by The Danish Council for Strategic Research
Correspondence to: Asbjørn Mohr Drewes, MD, PhD, DMSc, Professor, Mech-Sense, Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Aalborg University Hospital, Mølleparkvej 4, DK-9000 Aalborg, Denmark. amd@mech-sense.com
Telephone: +45-99-326228 Fax: +45-99-326507
Received: June 18, 2013
Revised: July 22, 2013
Accepted: August 20, 2013
Published online: November 14, 2013
Core Tip

Core tip: Pain management in chronic pancreatitis often remains unsatisfactory. An overview of the current theories on pain generation in chronic pancreatitis is crucial in order to understand the complexity and limitations of current therapeutic approaches. Also, optimal treatment will only be achieved on the basis of a better understanding of these mechanisms. Furthermore, this review may serve as an inspiration for future research and development of methods that can determine the relative contribution of different mechanisms to the “collective” abdominal pain, before patients are subjected to more or less empirical treatment.