Multiple therapeutic modalities studied for
acute pancreatitis often show a poor correlation between results obtained in experimental studies and results of clinical trials. One of the main reasons for this discrepancy is that in most experimental studies the drugs were administered immediately after induction of
pancreatitis, whereas in the clinical setting there is almost always a delay between the onset of the disease and initiation of the treatment. We studied the effects of a
delayed treatment with
octreotide, the synthetic analogue of the
hormone somatostatin, on acute experimental
pancreatitis in rats. The disease was induced by intraparenchymal
injections of 0.5 ml 5%
sodium taurocholate, and
octreotide (10 mg/kg/day s.c.) was started either 4 or 12 hr later. Subcutaneous saline
injections were used in controls. One-half of the animals of each study group was sacrificed after 36 hr, and the following parameters were examined: pancreatic weight, plasma pH, serum
calcium and
amylase, and histopathological damage. The same parameters, as well as survival, were assessed after 20 days in the remaining rats. Neither intrapancreatic saline
injections, nor
octreotide administration without the induction of
pancreatitis, caused any biochemical or histological alterations.
Hypocalcemia and
acidosis in
pancreatitis-induced rats were improved by
octreotide, but, as expected, it had no effect on
amylase levels.
Octreotide ameliorated pancreatic
edema, intestinal dilatation, and the histopathological injury score 36 hr after induction of
pancreatitis. Mortality was 40% in control animals, and only 20% in rats treated with
octreotide. Overall,
octreotide had beneficial effects in acute experimental
pancreatitis, and was more effective when started earlier. These results indicate that
octreotide may have a role in the management of
acute pancreatitis.