• An unusual complication of acute necrotizing pancreatitis occurred in which erosion of the intrapancreatic common bile duct and cephalic pancreatic duct formed a pancreaticobiliary cavity. This pancreatic process was observed to enhance during contrast computed tomography and was hypervascular during angiography, making preoperative diagnosis difficult. To our knowledge, the spontaneous development of such a cavity as a complication of acute pancreatitis has not been reported. The patient was successfully treated with pancreaticoduodenectomy.
(Arch Surg 1988;123:1000-1003)