Assessment of Dimension and Density of Pancreas in Diabetic and Non diabetic patients in Computed Tomography

Introduction: Pancreatic fat content is negatively associated with insulin secretion. Thus, pancreatic size may vary in diabetics as compared to non-diabetics. Computed tomography (CT) can accurately measure pancreatic size and density. This study was aimed to measure density and thickness of pancreas in diabetic and non-diabetic individuals.Methods: Prospective cross-sectional study was done in 226 individuals, 108 diabetics and 118 non-diabetics, who were sent for contrast enhanced CT. Weight and BMI of the individuals were recorded. Thickness and density of the pancreas of all the individuals were measured at head, body and tail regions. Density was measured in both non-contrast and contrast images. Mean, standard deviation and range of the pancreatic thickness and density were derived. Thus, derived data were compared in different gender and in diabetic and non-diabetic individuals. Result: Among 226 individuals, 50% were male and 50% were female. Mean age of the subjects was 54.8 years with range of 21-78 years. Weight and BMI were significantly higher in diabetic individuals as compared to non-diabetics. Thickness of the pancreas at all levels were significantly more in non-diabetics as compared to the diabetic individuals. However, density of the pancreas at all levels were not significantly different in diabetic and non-diabetics. Conclusion: We found smaller pancreatic size in diabetics as compared to non-diabetic individuals. Although increased pancreatic fat deposition was presumed in diabetics, no significant pancreatic density difference between diabetics and non-diabetics was observed in our study. Keywords:Pregnancy, thyroid, volume, ultrasound