Relationship between serum endocan levels and clinical follow-up in patients with acute pancreatitis: Can serum endocan be a biomarker for acute pancreatitis?

Background and Aims: Several markers and scoring systems are used to determine the prognosis of acute pancreatitis. In this study, the role of endocan in predicting prognosis was investigated by comparing the relation between C-reactive protein, the Ranson score, the revised Atlanta classification, and other laboratory indicators in patients with mild and severe pancreatitis. Materials and Methods: Fifty acute pancreatitis patients were studied prospectively. Endocan, biochemical parameters, and C-reactive protein values were measured at the time of admission and on the second and seventh days. The time between complaints and patient admission, the length of stay, and the severity of pancreatitis according to the Ranson score and revised Atlanta classification were recorded. The SPSS 22.0 statistical package was used for data analysis. Results: The mean patient age was 61.36±16.21 years, and 54% of patients were female. According to the Ranson score, 20 cases (30%) had severe pancreatitis. When endocan levels in the mild and severe pancreatitis groups were compared at the time of application and at the second and seventh days, there were no statistically significant differences. There were no statistically significant differences in serum endocans between groups of patients classified according to the revised Atlanta scoring system. When patients were subdivided according to pancreatitis severity, the mean C-reactive protein levels on the second day were 95.05 mg/L in patients with severe pancreatitis and 77.06 mg/L in patients with mild pancreatitis. Other laboratory indices, such as alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, gamma-glutamyl transferase, alkaline phosphatase, total bilirubin, and direct bilirubin, were correlated with disease severity. Conclusion: To clarify the relationship between the prognosis of acute pancreatitis and endocans, more extensive prospective studies are needed