Hepcidin as a predictor of disease severity in acute pancreatitis: a single center prospective study.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Predicting the severity of acute pancreatitis is limited to clinical, laboratory and radiological risk factors. Hepcidin levels increase in acute inflammation. We aimed to assess the relationship between hepcidin and C-reactive protein (CRP), white blood cells (WBC) and multi-detector computerized tomography (MDCT) in predicting the severity of pancreatitis. METHODOLOGY: We undertook a prospective review of 59 consecutive patients with acute pancreatitis admitted to our clinic. Biochemical values were measured from blood samples taken within 2 hours of admission and from between 2 and 72 hours related to the time of symptom onset. RESULTS: In predicting severe acute pancreatitis, hepcidin was superior to CRP and WBC (Area Under the Curve (AUC)=0.79, p=0.003; AUC=0.69, p=NS; AUC=0.53, p=NS, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: In this study, hepcidin was found to be superior to CRP in predicting the severity of pancreatitis.