Conservative management strategy for pancreatitis-associated mesenteric venous thrombosis.

Mesenteric venous thrombosis is a rare, but potentially lethal, complication of pancreatitis. Although management is usually directed toward the underlying pancreatitis, there is no standard defined for treatment of the associated mesenteric venous thrombosis. Anticoagulant therapy was chosen as treatment for the case presented in this report, but other management methods for this entity have been described in the literature. Based on our experience and review of the literature, a management strategy for patients with pancreatitis-associated mesenteric venous thrombosis has been developed.