Low prevalence of exocrine pancreatic insufficiency in patients with diabetes mellitus

Introduction: Exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI) can occur in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM). Incidence of EPI and its clinical significance remain poorly defined. The aim of our study was to determine whether exocrine pancreatic function is impaired in patients with DM. Patients and methods: One hundred and fifty consecutive patients, mean age 59.0 (+/- 12.0 years), with DM lasting at least 5 years were included in the study. We included 50 patients with type 1 DM (DM1), 50 insulin-treated patients DM type 2 (DM2-insulin) and 50 non-insulin treated patients with DM type 2 (DM2 no-insulin). Diagnosis of DM was established from health records, lasting 15.0 +/- 9.9 years on average. EPI was diagnosed with a fecal elastase-1 concentration (FE1) of less than 200 mu g/g (ELISA). Results: FE1 was reduced in 8 (5.4%) patients: mildly reduced (100-200 mu g/g) in 4 patients (2.7%) and markedly reduced (<100 mu g/g) in 4 patients (2.7%). Frequency of EPI was 3 in DM1, 5 in DM2(insulin) and none in DM2 (no-insulin) groups. Conclusions: EPI in DM occurred less frequently than in previous studies, probably due to our strict exclusion criteria (age, alcohol intake). Copyright (c) 2013, IAP and EPC. Published by Elsevier India, a division of Reed Elsevier India Pvt. Ltd. All rights reserved.