| Theme |
Autoimmune Pancreatitis -- Present Status & Future Perspectives |
| Title |
Initial Treatment of Autoimmune Pancreatitis |
| Author |
Tetsuya Takikawa |
Division of Gastroenterology, Tohoku University Graduate Scool of Medicine |
| Author |
Atsushi Masamune |
Division of Gastroenterology, Tohoku University Graduate Scool of Medicine |
| Author |
Kazuhiro Kikuta |
Division of Gastroenterology, Tohoku University Graduate Scool of Medicine |
| Author |
Atsushi Kanno |
Division of Gastroenterology, Tohoku University Graduate Scool of Medicine |
| Author |
Tooru Shimosegawa |
Division of Gastroenterology, Tohoku University Graduate Scool of Medicine |
| [ Summary ] |
Almost 20 years have passed since the disease concept of autoimmune pancreatitis (AIP) was first proposed by Yoshida et al., and much knowledge of initial treatment has been gained. The indication for treatment is symptoms of AIP such as obstructive jaundice, abdominal pain, and the presence of other symptomatic organ involvement. Steroid is the first‒line agent for induction of remission in active AIP patients. Although steroid therapy mostly provides a good response, relapses often occur during the follow‒up period. Therefore, in Japan, maintenance steroid therapy (MST) is recommended for reducing the risk of relapses. MST is commonly continued for 3 years ; subsequently, the withdrawal of steroid should be considered depending on the condition of patient and disease from the view point of steroid side effects. |