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Abstract
The vascular phase is an immediate response to cell injury and involves vasodilation leading to increased capillary wall permeability, which allows the movement of fluid into the tissue surrounding the injury ( Porth 2015 ). [...]the cell damage that occurs in acute pancreatitis leads to the accumulation of fluid inside the pancreas, which causes local swelling. [...]these signs are non-specific and can be associated with other acute conditions such as cholecystitis (inflammation of the gallbladder) or perforated peptic ulcer ( Johnson et al 2014 ). [...]diagnosis of acute pancreatitis is based on the presence of at least two of the following ( Wu and Banks 2013 , Dooley et al 2015 , Greenberg et al 2016 ): Acute abdominal pain, which has a sudden onset, is persistent, epigastric and usually radiating to the back. There are several possible systemic complications associated with severe disease that nurses must be aware of when there has been significant fluid loss from the circulation to the pancreas and abdominal cavity, for example respiratory dysfunction, renal dysfunction and metabolic acidosis associated with the development of shock ( Krenzer 2016 ). [...]monitoring fluid and electrolyte balance, as well as arterial blood gas monitoring, are important elements of systemic monitoring in severe pancreatitis to ensure early and appropriate intervention. Glycaemic control may be disrupted because of the effect of pancreatic damage and the physiological stress associated with acute illness on insulin production. [...]monitoring blood glucose levels should be a standard aspect of the nursing assessment of acute pancreatitis to ensure early intervention, such as the administration of insulin in response to high blood glucose levels.