pancreatic duct

Pancreatic duct
The pancreatic duct.
Latin	ductus pancreaticus
Gray's	subject #251 1202
Precursor	Pancreatic bud
MeSH	Pancreatic+Ducts

The pancreatic duct, or duct of Wirsung (also, the Major pancreatic duct due to the existence of an accessory pancreatic duct), is a duct joining the pancreas to the common bile duct to supply pancreatic juices which aid in digestion provided by the "exocrine pancreas". The pancreatic duct joins the common bile duct just prior to the ampulla of Vater, after which both ducts perforate the medial side of the second portion of the duodenum at the major duodenal papilla.

The duct of Wirsung is named after its discoverer, the German anatomist Johann Georg Wirsung (1589-1643).^[1]

Accessory pancreatic duct

Most people have just one pancreatic duct. However, some have an additional accessory pancreatic duct, called the Duct of Santorini.

Clinical significance

Compression, obstruction or inflammation of the pancreatic duct may lead to acute pancreatitis. The most common cause for obstruction is choledocholithiasis, or gallstones in the common bile duct. A gallstone may get lodged in the constricted distal end of the ampulla of Vater, where it blocks the flow of both bile and pancreatic juice into the duodenum. Bile backing up into the pancreatic duct may initiate pancreatitis.^[2]

Pancreatic ductal carcinoma is a common form of pancreatic cancer.

Additional images

ERCP image showing the pancreatic duct and biliary tree.	Accessory digestive system.	Interior of the descending portion of the duodenum, showing bile papilla.	Pancreas of a human embryo of five weeks.
Pancreas of a human embryo at end of sixth week.

References

1. ^ doctor/2941 at Who Named It?
2. ^ Moore, Keith L.; Dalley, Arthur F. (2006). Clinically Oriented Anatomy, Fifth Edition. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. p. 287. ISBN 0-7817-3639-0. 

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