Ectopic pancreas of the stomach with recurrent inflammation—report of a case—

Abstract

A 35-year-old woman was been followed up for recurrent abdominal pain of unknown origin. In July 2008, she was admitted to our hospital with high-grade fever and epigastralgia. Abdominal computed tomography (CT) revealed thickened gastric wall with low-density area in the pyloric part. Gastroscopy revealed submucosal prominence. Conservative therapy with antibiotics was performed because gastric wall abscess formation was suspected, which relieved her symptoms. Follow-up CT after 3 months revealed disappearance of the previous findings. However, same pain was recurrent after 14 months. CT showed the similar findings as before and the submucosal lesion, ulceration, and purulent discharge were detected on gastroscopy. Surgical resection was performed on clinical diagnosis of gastric wall abscess formation. Microscopic findings revealed ectopic pancreas consisting of acinar cells and pancreatic ducts, inflammatory cell infiltration, and increase in interstitial connective tissue. Pathological diagnosis was ectopic pancreas concomitant to abscess formation. Since ectopic pancreas with any symptoms is relatively rare, we report this case with the review of literature.