A child with neuroblastoma who presented with acute pancreatitis

Abstract

IntroductionNeuroblastoma is the commonest extracranial solid tumour in children and accounts for 15% of all paediatric deaths due to malignancies 1,2 . It commonly presents as abdominal pain and abdominal mass. It may present with obstructive jaundice due to bile duct obstruction [3][4][5][6] . We report a case of neuroblastoma with acute pancreatitis. Case reportAn eight year old boy was admitted with a history of abdominal pain for 3 months and abdominal distension for 1 month. The abdominal pain was dull, severe, agonizing, mostly confined to the epigastric region, radiating to the back, aggravated after taking food, relieved by leaning forward and associated with anorexia and diarrhoea. Abdominal distension was gradually worsening (Figure 1). There was no history of taking any drugs such as azathioprine, 6-mercaptopurine, methyldopa or thiazide diuretics and no history of abdominal trauma or previous viral illness. There was, no family history of pancreatitis and no contact history of tuberculosis.Two days after admission, he developed continuous fever (highest temperature 104 0 F) and non-bilious vomiting. On examination on day 3 of admission, he was fretful, febrile, had mild pallor, a pulse rate of 84/min, blood pressure of 110/70 mm Hg, a respiratory rate of 34/min and oxygen saturation (SPO2) of 97% in room air. Anthropometrically _________________________________________