The Use of Ampicillin in Acute Pancreatitis

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The suggestion that bacteria may be involved pathophysiologically in acute pancreatitis has been supported by the efficacy of antibiotics in diminishing the mortality of experimental pancreatitis (1), and the possibly lower incidence of pancreatic abscesses since the use of antibiotics in pancreatitis (2). However, a recent retrospective review showed that the incidence of infectious complications in acute pancreatitis was similar in those given and not given prophylactic antibiotics (3). As there have been heretofore no published controlled studies, our investigation was designed to help answer this question, by comparing prophylactic ampicillin with placebo in the management of acute pancreatitis.

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