Pancreatic juice prostaglandin e2 concentrations are elevated in chronic pancreatitis and improve detection of early disease.

Objectives: Chronic pancreatitis (CP) may be difficult to diagnose in early stages. We aimed to measure pancreatic juice (PJ) prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) concentrations to determine whether they are elevated in CP and improve diagnosis of early disease.

Methods: We measured PJ PGE2 in 10 patients with established CP, 25 patients who met criteria for "minimal change" chronic pancreatitis (MCCP), and 10 normal control participants.